The Gods love me, they love me not
by MarinaDelaCruzBane2260
Summary: When Clary is forced to pair up with Jace Herondale for a music assignment, possibly the most important one of all, she dreads every moment of it. But the Gods aren't done with her yet. She is given another assignment: She must tutor the Golden Boy in 3 subjects. For the entire year. All Clary wants is to get away from him. But the Gods have other plans. My first fanfic!:)
1. Chapter 1

Title: The Gods love me, they love me not.

**Hi guys! I'm new at this so sorry if I make mistakes and stuff. Hehe. This is my first fanfiction so please review and tell me ways I can improve my story. Thank you! **

**Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I don't own any of these characters. I cri evri time.**

Chapter 1: It all began when…

I looked around. Everything was the same: The position of the filthy plastic chairs and tables, the so-called cooks, and the students of St. Idris High. I played with what was meant to be lunch. My 'mash-potato' looked dried poop. I glanced at the people around me. How could they eat this 'food'? And there were a few who looked like they actually enjoyed it, rising up to grab a second helping. What was wrong with them? My best friend Simon was one of these people.

"Hey where are you going?" I asked when he stood up, his chair scraping against the dirty tiled floor.

"To get another taste of heaven."

"What?" I said in confusion. I looked around, expecting to see angels or something. Simon rolled his eyes and gestured towards his empty plate.

"I'm going to get more mash-potato. It's simply to die for."

I looked at him like he was a lunatic.

"What's wrong with you? It tastes like it came out of the sewer! And just look at the shape and colour it's absolutely disgusting!"

Simon shook his head in mock disappoint and sighed.

"Clary, Clary, Clary. I thought you knew better than to judge a book by its cover. Or in this case, food by its looks." He narrowed his eyes. "Besides, how do you know what anything from a sewer tastes like?"

I sighed. Sometimes he was hopeless.

"If you despise it so much, why don't you give that" he nodded towards my untouched plate of lunch, "to me. It'll save me have to trek _all _the way across the cafeteria. " he exaggerated the all, pulling out the sound of the _l_. I pushed my plate towards him, all too happy to oblige as he sat back down, his chair once again making a squeaking noise.

I took out a slightly wrinkled pear from my bag and took a bite, making sure not to bite near the bruise. I had hastily picked a random piece of fruit from the basket before I left for school. I looked at my pear with distaste. It was dry and tasteless. An apple would've been better. Still, it had to be better than what Simon was so eagerly eating. Once Simon finished, I stood up.

"Hey, I need to go to the library. I'm having trouble writing the article for the newsletter so I want to ask Ms. Blackthorn for help. Care to join?"

Simon shrugged. "I have nothing better to do. Sitting here, seeing these people gag over this delicious food" Simon ignored the face that I gave him when he said 'delicious' "makes _me _ want to gag."

I laughed. "Ok Simon, I get it. You like cafeteria food. But a simple yes would've been enough." I picked up my bag and took my now-empty plate to the bin. Simon threw his plate in the bin, eyeing the food that had been thrown away with what looked like disappointment. I heard him mutter "What is wrong with people?" Funny how I thought exactly the same thing for the opposite reason. I was wrong. Simon did not simply like the food. He loved it. And I bet if the cooks weren't 4 times his age and plump, he would totally marry them.

As I walked past the table where Seelie and her group of friends were sitting, I picked up my pace. But just as I was about to past her table, she shrieked** "**WHAT THE HELL?!**"**

I looked around, expecting to see her facing one of her friends. But no, she was staring at me. Or glaring. She repeated the phrase but in an even higher pitched voice. I winced and looked at her in confusion. What did I do to her?

I never liked her. She was such a…twelvie. She never left me alone in primary, making my life difficult. But as we entered high school, she seemed to have completely forgotten about me. I guess having a boyfriend, people who worshipped her and being captain of the cheerleading team made her forget trivial things. Like me.

"You ruined it!" She screeched.

"What?" Then I saw it. Her bottle of Maybelline aquamarine-coloured nail-polish had been tipped over, the contents spilling onto the table as well as her clothes. Her beige ruffled top, obviously made of an expensive and high quality material, was splattered with nail polish. Her denim jeans, the Gucci brand name clearly visible on her pocket, also had a few drops of polish on it. Just looking at her clothes, I knew it must have been expensive. Very expensive. Everything that Seelie Queen owned was expensive.

Her parents were both very successful and well-known lawyers, earning millions a year. However, they never really had time for their only child. They spoiled her with clothes, toys and electronics. But they never actually spent time with her. But Seelie never seemed to mind. In fact, she used her parents' constant neglect to her advantage. She threw parties all the time, some that ended with the police interfering. Almost all her parties went till 3 am. I had never been to one. And I wasn't planning on ever attending one.

The nail polish was really visible and I attempted to hide a laugh with a cough. Thank god she wasn't the brightest. My thoughts about the price of her clothes were confirmed when Seelie spoke, or screamed again.

"You ruined my outfit! It cost 400 dollars! And nail polish is _not_ easy to wash off. And now I'm going to have to throw it away!" My eyes bulged at the price. The price of all my clothes in my wardrobe would only add up to 400 dollars. She was crazy.

"It wasn't me Se-" I started but she cut me off, lifting a long slender finger. The whole cafeteria was quiet, now that everyone was watching Seelie go off. She seemed to enjoy the attention.

"I really liked this outfit" she whined. Then her expression hardened and she narrowed her eyes.

"I hate you. You ruined my outfit! You will pay for this. I promise you."She turned around and continued her conversation with her followers, acting as if our exchange had never occurred. I stood behind her, baffled as the people in the cafeteria turned back to their own business. I looked back at Simon, forgetting that he was even there. He looked quite amused. Together we walked out of the cafeteria, towards the library thinking about Seelie the whole time. I shrugged it off Seelie's threat. She would probably forget about the whole incident in a day or so. She would most likely just buy another outfit to replace it.

But oh, how wrong I was.

**Well, that was the first chapter. Please tell me what you think about it. If I get a few reviews, I will update. The more reviews, the faster I update.**

**R & R**

**Thanks, **

**DelaCruzBane**


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you to for giving me my first review. It wasn't much but still **** Thank you again. Also to my good friends rnandy and Not Leon, thanks for reading it. To lindsayhonaker, Seelie is quite r00d.**

**Here's chapter 2. **

Chapter 2: Seelie's Group

"Oi."

I ignored the voice pretending to be jotting down notes in my workbook even though class hadn't begun yet. I heard one of them rip out a page from a book and scrunch it up. A second later, I felt it hit the back of my head and people behind me high-fiving each other. I calmed myself down, and then turned around in my chair, putting on a very fake innocent smile.

"What do you want?"

Meliorn smirked at me. "I have a joke for you", he said. But I already knew what the joke was going to be. I sighed and continued to smile.

"Please. Indulge me" the sarcasm dripping in my voice.

"What's orange and sounds like a parrot?"

I had heard this joke a million times. Well, now a million and _one _times. "I don't know. You tell me."

"Carrot!" All of them burst out laughing, as if it was the best joke ever. They clapped Meliorn on the back, and he grinned back at them.

"You know. Don't you think the jokes' getting just a tad bit old? After all, you've been saying the same old joke for," I pretended to count on my fingers, "around forever now. Why don't you find a new one?" But before Meliorn could answer, I answered my own question. "That's right. I forgot. You guys don't have much up here right?" I tapped my temple. Meliorn's eyes flashed with anger. But before he could reply, which I doubt he could anyway, because he wasn't very eloquent when he was mad, the teacher walked in.

Mr Penhallow taught English to yr 10's. The majority of the time, he had his feet crossed on the mahogany table, hands entwined, rested on his bulging belly. Mr Penhallow was an old man. He was quite plump, and had a very long beard. He taught our class with enthusiasm, even though three quarters of the class responded to his enthusiasm with blank stares. I personally loved having him as a teacher.

"Good morning class." Everybody muttered back a good morning. "Please turn to page 144 of your novel." Everybody groaned and slowly reached into their bags. I already had the book on my desk. Frankenstein wasn't one of my favourite books, but Mr Penhallow somehow made this book more enjoyable.

"Now, we know that Frankenstein was never…" but as sir started talking, I began to drift away from the topic, thinking about Meliorn. It had been almost a year since my unfortunate incident with Seelie. For a week, Seelie acted as if we had never had the conversation. But one day, I walked to my locker, shocked to find the words like 'slut' and 'cow' spray-painted on the door. I painted over the horrible words but each time, the words would reappear until I gave up trying to get rid of them. That's when Seelie and her friends began teasing me, calling me names, constantly knocking my books out of my hands on 'accident'. Seelie was in the popular group, which consisted of approximately 10 girls and 10 boys. Whenever they had the chance, they would find ways to irritate me, to make my life harder.

But one day, I just stopped trying to avoid them and I became oblivious to their attempts to mock me. I hoped that this would make them leave me alone. But they still never stopped. It got boring after a while. Meliorn, Seelie, Jace, Maureen, Camille and the rest of them always said the same thing. They never seemed to get sick of it.

My thoughts were interrupted when Mr Penhallow called my name. My head turned back towards the front the classroom. I hadn't realised that I was looking out the window.

"Clary, if you don't mind. Why did Frankenstein create his monster?" Beads of sweat rolled down his face and he dabbed them with a black and red striped handkerchief. I mentally sighed in relief. If sir had asked me any other question, I would've been screwed. But this question, I would answer. Meliorn snickered behind me, thinking that I wouldn't be able to answer it.

"Mr Penhallow, I believe Victor created his monster because he thought he was improving mankind in a sick and twisted, not to mention _wrong _way. Doing this, he also felt more like a god, bringing the dead back to life." I finished, feeling quite satisfied with my answer. Apparently, so did Mr Penhallow.

His face lit up like a Christmas tree. "Very good Miss Fray. Very good indeed. Now, did everyone hear that well said and _correct_ answer?" He looked around, peering over his half-moon glasses. The class mumbled a yes, some nodding. Meliorn wasn't happy with the teacher's reaction to my response. The teacher seemed to have notice Meliorn's angry expression because he stood up, which was quite rare during class, and slowly walked towards Meliorn. He stopped next to Meliorn's desk and peered down at him.

"Is there something wrong Meliorn? Do you think you can give a better answer than Miss Fray?" When Meliorn didn't respond Sir continued. "Because if you do, I would_ love_ to hear it." Meliorn looked down and muttered something that was too quiet for anyone to hear.

"What did you say? Speak up boy!" Sir did not speak very loudly, but his very deep voice rang.

Meliorn lifted up his head just a fraction and said "No sir. I have no answer. Clary's answer was well said."

Mr Penhallow walked back to his desk muttering "I thought so."

Meliorn sunk into his chair, looking even worse than before Mr Penhallow came.

I looked at Meliorn. He had called me Clary. I had never heard him say my proper name. To him, I was either 'carrot' or 'shortie'. It must've been hard for him to say my proper name. I resisted the urge to laugh. He looked like he was in pain. But I couldn't care less.

…

"Hi."

Simon didn't reply. He was looking at something with a dreamy expression. I turned towards the direction, expecting to see a LoL poster or something. I was wrong. It wasn't something. It was _someone_. He looked at her like she was a goddess. I swear he would've started drooling if I didn't wake him from his reverie.

"Hey", I said again, a bit louder, and snapped my fingers in front of his face. He jumped, his glasses almost falling off.

"Gosh Clary, don't scare me like that! You know I hate it when you do that." He said.

"I'm sorry but if I didn't stop you, you would've started drooling over Snow White in front of everyone."

Simon's eyebrows pulled together in confusion. "What?" Bu as soon as he said it, realisation dawned on his face. He blushed and pushed his glasses up.

"What? I wasn't looking at Isabelle."

Isabelle Lightwood. She had jet black hair that went to her waist and pale skin. Her hazel brown eyes looked a lot like Simon's. She hung out with Seelie but you could tell that she was uncomfortable. I didn't hate her. She was the only one in the group who never mocked me. Not once.

I nudged Simon. "Why don't you go talk to her? Staring at her isn't going to get you anywhere right?"

He sighed. "I know. But she wouldn't ever talk to someone like me. She's popular. Just look at her. She's perfect. What am I? Just a not-so good looking gaming nerd."

I felt sorry for Simon. I put a hand on his shoulder and smiled at him."Simon. Number 1, how do you know she won't talk to you? I mean, it's not like you've ever tried talking to her."

Simon opened his mouth, but I lifted a finger to stop him.

"And no Simon, asking for a protractor in Math class does _not_ count as a conversation ok? Now, moving onto number 2, I find you very attractive and cute. And so what if you're a nerd? You never know, maybe she digs shy, gaming nerds."

Simon gave me a small smile, nodding. We left the matter alone, talking about our classes. Monday was the only day where Simon and I didn't have any classes together until 5th period, which was after lunch. I told Simon about Mr Penhallow and Meliorn.

Simon laughed. "Mr Penhallow has just officially become my favourite teacher."

As we talked, I forgot all about the time. When I looked at my watch, I jumped up, knocking my chair over. I cursed. I was meant to quickly talk to Ms Blackthorn about the school letter. I had been writing for the school newsletter since I was in year 7. I loved writing, and writing for the school gave me topics and events to write about. Even though only a handful of people actually read it every month, I still enjoyed writing it.

"Simon, I have to go to the library. I forgot to meet with Ms Blackthorn. I'll see you in Math ok?"

He gave me thumbs up. I slung my bag strap over my shoulder, running out of the cafeteria, determined to get to the library before the bell rang. But just as I rounded a corner, I ran into someone. My books went flying out my bag. _Smooth Clary. You didn't zip up your bag._ I picked them up hastily, stuffing them back into my bag. I stood up, realising that the other person didn't fall

I muttered an apology and kept my head down, not wanting to see who I crashed into. But as I started towards the library again, the person blocked me.

"I said I'm sor-" I looked up, as I wasn't very tall, meaning that I had to look up in order to see someone's face the majority of the time. All I saw was golden hair, arms crossed and an amused smile

_Oh great._

**Ok. If I get a few more reviews, I'll update the next day cause I have Chapter 3 all written out.**

**Baii**


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3- Jace? Disgusting.

**Hey guys. Wow. I got more reviews then I expected. That's cool. Thank you. **

**I was going to update yesterday cause it was Christmas but I went to the beach so that pretty took up my whole day. But anyway, here's chapter 3.**

**Late Merry Christmas! :)**

"What. Do. You. Want." I glared at him. He wasn't moving. Or responding. I was going to be late. He just kept smirking, looking down at me.

Why oh why did I have to be 1.5 metres** (for the American peeps, that approx 5 feet.)** tall? Whenever I talked to someone, I had to crane my head up so I could see their face. This always made me feel small and inferior. My whole family consisted of tall people. My mother was 1.7 metres and my brother and father both exceeded 1.8 metres. So why was I 1.5 metres? It so was unfair. I had tried wearing heels before but that hadn't worked well. I tripped thrice in less than two minutes.

"Dude, seriously. What do you want? I have to be somewhere so unless you have something to say, please move out of my way."

Jace crossed his arms. "Where Carrot?"

I looked up in confusion. "What?"

Jace rolled his eyes. "Where are you going Carrot?"

Oh right. That's what he was talking about. I shrugged, narrowing my eyes. "Why should I tell you? You're just going to report back to your girlfriend."

That made sense. Seelie used her beauty and popularity to manipulate people, in order to get what she wanted. If she found out anything about me, she would use it to her advantage.

Jace and Seelie had been 'together' since year 9. Everyone thought that they were the cutest couple in the school but Simon and I knew that they didn't really love each other. Seelie was captain of the cheerleading team, which had won countless national competitions. Jace was captain of the volleyball team, which had remained undefeated for the past 8 years. Since they were both so popular, becoming a couple would make them even more popular and liked. So that's what they did. No one seemed to notice that Seelie flirted with dozens of boys, both inside and outside of school.

Jace raised his eyebrows. "Well, aren't you a funny one. I'm not a slave Carrot, so no; I'm not asking anything because of her."

"Then why are you here?" I challenged.

"Uh, did you hit you head when you fell?" He reached towards my head, probably going to hit it but I jumped back, not wanting him to touch me. _Ew_

He smiled at my reaction but his arm fell back to his side. "You" he pointed to me, "ran into me" and pointed towards himself "remember?"

Oh, well that was a stupid question. I looked down at my watch, shocked to find the glass had cracked. It must've broken when I fell. I was going to say to Jace that it was his fault. But I realised that the fault was all mine. I was the one who crashed into him. I sighed."Do you have the time?" he didn't seem to notice my broken watch.

Jace looked at me for a long time and I resisted the urge to look at myself. Did I have food stains on my blouse? He sighed and took his Iphone out from his jean pocket. "It's 1.22".

I had 3 minutes. I tried to step around Jace but he stuck his arm out and pushed me back. _Damn_.

"Now, returning back to our _very interesting_ conversation, where are you heading Carrot?" He crossed his arms again.

"Why do you call me that?" I asked.

"What? Carrot?"

I nodded.

"Well, a carrot is orange and you clearly have orange hair." He took a strand of my hair.

I glared at him, smacking his hand away.

"Carrots are also small."

Gosh, they were stupid. "Your bunch of friends aren't very smart are you? Have you not seen a big carrot before?"

Jace ignored the insult. "Where are you heading shortie?"

_Ha. He didn't use Carrot this time. He knows I'm right. _"I tell you and you leave me alone ok?"

"Ok._"_ He held out his pinky. I ignored it and pointed towards the old brick building. The library

didn't look like much, but the inside was a lot better. We had a wide range of books, the computers were fast and the seats were super-comfy.

"Where is that?" Jace asked.

I gawked at him. I mean, I knew he probably never read much but still, it's not easy to miss a massive brick building in the school.

"Are you talking about the library? Cause you're pointing isn't very accurate."

_So he does know what it is. _I nodded. "Yea, that's where I was going before you so rudely, blocked my way."

But Jace saw my precious expression. He frowned. "Geez shortie. I might not exactly be smart but I'm not dumb."

I rolled my eyes, tempted to say _are you sure?_ I flicked my wrist, making a shooing motion.

"What?" he said.

But before I could reply, the bell rang. I groaned, knowing that I would have to wait until Wednesday to speak with Ms Blackthorn because she wasn't here on Wednesdays.

Jace grinned and shrugged casually. "Sorry?" But his tone of voice made it _very_ clear that he wasn't. I glared at Jace, something I seemed to be doing a lot around him.

"Ass." I turned around and walked towards room 7, where I'd be having Math. As I walked, I heard Jace chuckling. I hated him.

…

I slammed my books onto the table, next to Simon. "I hate him."

Simon looked up from his X-Men comic book. "Well, aren't you one happy bunny."

I glared at him. _Man, I do that too much. One day, my eyes are going to pop out._

"What?" He looked at me in confusion. I gave him a few seconds to make the connection but his facial expression stayed the same.

I sighed and sat down. "Simon. What does Seelie and her friends call me?"

"Uh. Well either shortie or carro-"He looked at me and grinned sheepishly. "Oh sorry."

"Gosh Simon, that took a while."

"And for you information, bunnies don't only eat carrots. Just so you know, I hate him too."

I looked at him, temporarily forgetting what we were talking about.

"Who?"

"Magneto. He's so annoying. Like seriously? Omigosh! He's just so cocky and arrogant."

I laughed. "Simon? Wrong person. However, the personality is amazingly similar."

"Hmmm." Simon stroked an imaginary beard, the way that Sherlock Holmes always did. As he thought about I-don't-know-what, I looked out the window, disgusted to find Seelie and her friends sitting outside. Seelie seemed to be in an argument with Maureen, no doubt about fashion, celebrities or gossip. Something gold caught my attention, only to find that it was Jace. He and his friends were throwing around a volleyball.

How did they all manage to have a free period at the same time? I watched as Jace tossed the volleyball up into the air. He flashed his cocky smile to Meliorn. Then somehow, as if he could see me looking, he turned towards my direction. And _winked_. I looked away. _Ew_.

I clenched the table, my knuckles whitening as I thought about all the suffering that Seelie had caused me. _Selfish, arrogant, annoying, manipulative –_

"Clary?" I looked at Simon who had interrupted my thoughts. That was probably a good thing though. Simon looked at my hands. I didn't realise that they were still tightly clenching the table. I let go and shook my hand, the colour returning to my knuckles.

I smiled at him. "I didn't know my knuckles could turn that white."

Simon looked at me uncertainly.

I patted his shoulder. "It's all good. I was just thinking about stuff."

He still looked a bit uncertain, but he let it go. "Alright then. If you say so." He returned to his comic book. I watched as his face lit up as he read page after page.

Simon and I had been best friends since childcare. We had gone to the same childcare, preschool, and primary. Amazingly, we were also in the same class for every year in primary. I had gone past being the closest of friends. It was so much more. Simon used to get bullied in primary because people thought he was a nerd. But being a best friend, I had my responsibilities so I scared all his bullies away. Permanently. I don't know how I had done it, but seeing Simon in pain? I just couldn't bear it.

Simon's chestnut brown eyes were filled with kindness and humour. I rarely ever saw him upset. His Helvetia glasses made him look adorable and his long mahogany brown hair just made him look even cuter. But Simon never liked his long hair. He always complained that it got into his eyes. But he never cut it. Because he knew it made him look cute.

As I watched Simon I thought _how dull my life would be if I didn't have Simon._ When Mr Fell walked into the classroom, I watched Simon sadly put his book away, bookmarking his page.

Math passed in a blur. The formulas were ones that I had already learnt and memorised. It was just revision for me.

…

I walked towards 6th period, which was Music. Usually, I was excited for Music, but today, knowing that Jace was going to be there, I wasn't too keen. I deliberately walked fast to class, hoping I could get there before Jace.

I succeeded. I sat down, pulling my earphones out of my bag. I avoided eye contact with the people around me, just in case Jace was one of them. I was going to check my watch when the teacher still hadn't arrived but I remembered that it had broken. As I thought about the meeting with Jace, the teacher arrived.

Mr Branwell, half ran in, puffing as he entered the room. He wiped away the sweat with his sleeve. Mr Branwell was _always _late. People constantly made up adventurous stories about his constant late arrival, such as him leading a secret double life as an assassin or ninja. But the most logical answer was that it was simply like him to be late. I took my earphones out, wrapping them around my phone before leaning down to put it back in my bag. After taking a minute to calm down, he spoke. "Sorry class for being late. I have some very important news for you."

Everyone began whispering to their friends but before the class could get any louder, Mr Branwell stopped it. "Please everyone." The conversations ceased and everyone's attention back to the teacher.

"Now, you know that you'll be choosing you're elective for years 11 and 12. But we want to make sure you have the skill and potential to pass the class. So we are giving you all an assignment: You are to create a piece of your own."

Everyone began speaking again. Some groaned while others fist-pumped the air. I smiled, knowing that I could easily do the assignment.

"But that's not it. You are writing the piece for 2 instruments in each family. If you paid attention during class, this bit should not be that difficult."

_Hmm. That should be no problem for me._ But the next words that came out of the teacher's mouth completely changed things.

"This is however, not an individual assignment. You will be working with a partner. Lucky for you, I have already partnered everyone. If you could please look at the smart board."

I watched as sir opened up a file. _Please give me a good partner. Please, please, please._ I scanned the list of names and stopped near the end of the page, where my name was. I looked at my partners name and my jaw dropped.

.Way.

**For some reason that last line won't come out the way I want it to. It's meant to be No. Frickin Way. ^ **

**Ok, that's it. I'll update the next chapter sooner if I can get 20+ reviews? Or is that too much? Hehe ok. Please review!**

**Baii**


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

**Ahhh I'm so sorry. These days have been so busy. I went shopping for three days in a row cause of the Boxing Day sales. I don't think I'll ever shop for clothes again. Well Happy New Year! Please enjoy this chapter **

I looked again, praying that the name would miraculously change. But no. It stayed the same. Jace Herondale. I groaned, inside and out. I refused to work with that… scoundrel. Maybe we could find a way to get this over and done with. Maybe I could just do all the work and stay far away from him. But what Mr. Branwell said crushed any possibilities of secretly working alone.

"Because this is so important, every second music lesson, you will be given the opportunity to work on this assignment with your partner. But, I guarantee that this will not be enough time for you so you and your partner must spend time together outside of school if you wish to pass. How much time you'll need outside of school will depend on the difficulty f your piece and how well you and your partner work together."

I looked at Jace._ Work together? Psh, there'd be none of that… _

"Now I know that some of you disagree with the partners you've been assigned," at this, the teacher pointedly looked at me. _That cow! He did this on purpose. Does he _want _me to fail?! Unbelievable. _

"But if you wish to pass this, you will need to set aside your differences and work together. I cannot tell you how important this assignment is." I quickly looked towards the smartboard again, scanning the list of names and partners. No one else would have our problem I realised. For everyone else, they were at least friends with their partners. So why did I have to be paired with the most despicable, arrogant and selfish jerk on this planet? I was a good girl! I did my homework and chores… well most of the time. I ate my vegetables and listened to my parents! So _why_?

"Now everyone, stand up and go sit with your partners and you may start discussing your assignment. If you have any questions, please do not be afraid to ask." Everyone stood up and starting moving around the classroom. I stood up, but instead of walking towards Jace, I walked up to the teacher's desk.

"Sir?"

He looked up from his computer. "Yes Clary, is there something I could help you with?"

I nodded. "Yea actually there is. I would prefer to work lone on this assignment if you don't mind."  
>He took off his glasses and placed them on the table. His head tilted to the side and he asked "And why is that Miss Fray?"<p>

I turned around and looked at Jace, who was currently the only one who wasn't sitting with his partner. But he didn't seem to mind. His long legs were crossed, as well as his arms. He caught y eye and gave me a lopsided grin.

He infuriated me. I _refused_ to work with _them_. I'd rather die. _Actually, no you wouldn't Clary. You can't die yet remember? You haven't been to Russia yet._ I looked back at Mr Branwell, hoping that he would sense my discomfort towards Jace. _Discomfort? Gee Clary, understatement of the year?_

But he continued to look at me. Was not seeing Jace's infuriating smile enough? I sighed. "Sir, I don't believe I would be able to work with my assigned partner. At all" I added when sir raised an eyebrow. _Damn, why can everyone raise an eyebrow? _"I'm afraid our differences are.. Too big to set aside. I just wouldn't work sir. We would most likely fail the assignment." His facial expression stayed the same and he didn't respond. I started to get desperate. "Please sir, I really want to pass this but I don't know if I can if I have Jace as my partner. Please sir" I pleaded.

He looked at me for a long time then sighed. "I'm sorry Miss Fray but you'll just have to find a way to deal with this problem. I'm sure you're not the one who feels uncomfortable with the choice of partner. "

_Serious? That's bullcrap! Everyone else in the class have no problem with their partner. All of them are at least friends. But me and Jace? We were a million miles away from that word._

I began to protest but he cut me off, speaking above me. "You will work with Mr Herondale for this assignment. That is final." From his eyes, I knew that arguing any further wouldn't do any good. But Mr Branwell was usually a very understanding person. He knows that Jace and I don't get along. So why did he do this? He didn't even give me opinion any. He just dismissed it. Had I upset him in any way recently?

My shoulders sagged and my head dropped for a moment, before I looked up and forced a smile. "Alright sir. Thank you." I walked away, feeling anything but thankful. Angry and panic would be better words for how I felt: Angry that sir had totally ignored me and had given me the worst partner ever. And I felt panic just thinking about having to work about Jace. I would surely fail this.

I walked over to Jace and his smile never wavered. "So how did it go?" But by the way he said it; I knew he knew what the answer was He had probably heard my whole conversation with the teacher. _Ass_.

"Alright Golden Boy. This assignment means a lot of me got it? So I will _not_ have some arrogant, selfish, cocky jerk to ruin it ok?"

His expression changed to mock hurt. "Ow Carrot. That hurt me. Why would you say that?"I wanted to strangle him right there. He and I both knew what he did to me. What he's _still doing_ to me. But I ignored him and went on. "So either you help me, which would probably never happen or you stay out of my way. You might go down, but I will _not_ have you pull me down with you. So I'm going to do all the work while you can sit here and look pretty. Interrupt me and I _will _distort you face."

He laughed. "Wow, that's a pretty intense insult for someone who's 1.5 metres tall."

I glared at him, but he seemed oblivious to my expression. If I had to work with him for a month, I would surely die.

"Anyway, I don't want you to do all the work. That would hardly be fair right?"

I laughed. A long fake one. One or 2 people looked at me, giving me weird looks but I didn't seem to mind. "That is 100% legitimate bullcrap. You don't give a crap about anyone but yourself."

"Hey that's a lie. I care about my family and friends. And Seelie."

I laughed again, harder than before. More than a few heads turned to look in my direction. Even Mr Branwell looked up from his computer. Usually, I didn't like a lot of attention, but right now I could care less. _Good, now everyone can listen to what I have to say._ Jace looked slightly disturbed by my laugh. I must've sounded really weird and mad. Crazy mad. I smiled sweetly at him, knowing that I was creeping him out.

"You are a funny guy Jace Herondale. Why don't we talk more often?"Even though it was obvious that I was being sarcastic, he opened his mouth to reply. But no. he was going to shut up for once in his life and listen to what I had to say.

"Oh that's right. Because I _hate_ you." I spat out those tree words with more force than I intended. Jace flinched, just slightly at my harsh tone. No one else would have probably seen the movement since they were all looking at me. _Would you look at that Clary? Words can hurt him. He isn't as brave as you think._

"You and your friends have nothing better to do so you come to me. You bully me to no end. But can't you guys see that you can no longer hurt me? Because for the past year, you _idiots_ have been using the same tactics, words, and jokes. They no longer hurt me. But I do feel something. You know what it is? Pity. For myself. Because I'm being bullied by _complete idiots_! You all think you're geniuses." I laughed again. "But oh, how wrong you are. You want to bully me? Fine with me. But please, be smart about it. Or at least try."I smirked."I understand if you can't. I have extremely low expectations when it comes to stupid bullies."

I let go of my breath, not even noticing that I had been holding it. The room was so quiet if deafened me. I wanted to see Jace's reaction to my outburst but I wanted him to think that I didn't care how he reacted. I bent down, picked up my bag and walked to Mr Branwell, not meeting anyone's eyes. Sir looked a bit speechless too. "Sir, May I be excused? I don't feel well." Which was a complete lie? _I feel great now. Come at me Jace._

He nodded, slightly smiling. Almost as if he was proud of me. I smiled back. "Thank you sir." I turned on my heel and walked out with my head held high, not looking back.

…

I walked around, not knowing where to go. Though Music was my last period, I couldn't leave because I had to catch the bus home. I walked around our school twice.

Our school had been found by a man called Raziel in 1891. Some parts of the school had been renovated to look more modern. The east side, which had the library and the north side of the school had been kept the same. As I wandered, the happiness started to fade. I looked at my watch, only to find a bare wrist. This made me really upset. The watch had meant a lot to me. My parents had happily given it to me for my 13th birthday. I still remember the proud look on my parents' faces. "You're now a teenager Clary. And you only get to be one for 5 years so enjoy every day of it" they said.

Of course, that had been 3 years before my dad cheated on my mum with some workmate. He had broken my mother's heart. And this family. I stayed with my mum but my brother left with my father because he didn't want him to be alone. Jono and I were really close. But the distance made it harder for us to see each other. My father had left us with the house and moved with Jono to Canberra. If I wanted to see them, or vice versa, I would have to endure a 3 hour car trip.

My brother and I still talked a lot. We called each other almost every night. He would tell me about father. I would tell him about mother. Then we'd talk about our own lives.

Mum and dad were high school sweethearts. They had also attended St. Idris High.

I started feeling even worse as I thought about my dad. Why did he have to be such an ass? My mum always loved him and cared for him. Was she not enough? I was glad that I didn't have to use his last name. I would've felt so ashamed. When my parents decided to divorce, they told us that we could pick between my father's or my mother's last name. I picked Fray. He picked Morgenstern.

I jumped as the bell rang. _Gee. Time sure flies when you think about how much of an ass your dad is. I'll keep that in mind._ As I walked towards the bus bay, I saw a fleck of gold towards the direction of the music room. I smiled to myself once again; feeling satisfied that I had unnerved Jace.

**Ok. Chapter 4 **** Please review and fave/follow. Why not do all three?**

**Baiii**


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

**Hey. So this is chapter 5. And did you guys hear? Tmi is being made into a TV show! OMG YAYAYAYAYAYAY. Also, I bought the Bane Chronicles and Clockwork Prince today. Yay.**

I reached back, my fingers searching for the key to the house. After a second or two, my fingers wrapped around the piece of metal and I pulled it out. I unlocked our wooden door, pushing it back. I walked in, immediately being drowned in a wonderful aroma. I unlocked our wooden door, pushing it back. I walked in, immediately being drowned in a wonderful aroma. _Yes. Mum's making spinach and ricotta triangles again. _That was my all time favourite food and no one made it better than my mum. I went into the kitchen and saw my mum standing beside the oven. _Oh yes. They're almost ready. _

Her flaming red hair was tightly tied back in a bun, a few strands still dangling. I had the same hair, eyes and smile as my mother. Unfortunately, and much to my dislike, everything else was inherited from my father. Except for my personality of course. If I became anything like my father, I would lock myself up in a room in some isolated desert, where I wouldn't be able to hurt people.

Mum was wearing her favourite apron, the green one with red apples.

"Hey mum. Those smell really delicious."

She turned around and laughed. "Hi honey. I didn't hear you come home. You say that every time I bake them. They're almost done now. Maybe 20 minutes?"

I groaned. 20 minutes was a long time. Mum smiled and went on. "You can have some once you finish your homework."

I groaned again. "But mum," I whined, feeling like a little child, "You know that this, "I pointed to my head, "can't concentrate if this" my hands moving to my stomach "is dying." I wasn't actually hungry. I just wanted to eat.

She laughed again. I loved it when mum laughed. She sounded so relaxed and carefree. The first month and a half after she and dad divorced, mum hadn't laughed. She rarely even smiled. But it had been almost three years since, and my mum had basically gotten over it. Well, at least she acted that way. Like the fact that mum still always wore the apron that dad gave her. I admired my mum. She was so brave and strong.

"Alright honey. Once they come out, you can have 2."

I pouted, pushing out my lower lip. Mum looked at me, trying not to succumb to my expression. But she sighed a second later and I knew that I had won. _Works like a charm._

"Fine. You can have three. But no more than that._"_

"Thanks mum. I love you." I smiled at her cheekily. "I'm going to take a quick shower. They should be done by the time I finish right?"

She smiled and pushed me gently. "Yes they should. Now go."

"Thanks mum" I said again. I walked up the stairs, leaning against the wall when the stairs twisted. I had done that since I was a child. It just felt so good. I walked to my room, putting my bag on my chair. I walked to my closet, taking out a random pair of pyjamas. It was strawberry pink, with teddy bears on it. It looked absolutely ridiculous. I loved it. I walked to the shower, smelling my mum's delicious triangles on the way.

…

"Mmm. Mum, they're so good," I said, taking a bite out of the corner of the triangle. The outside was flaky and crispy but the inside was soft, the taste of the filling perfectly blending with the pastry. I could eat them for the rest of my life and never get tired of the taste.

Mum smiled. She loved it when people complimented her food. It encouraged her to cook more often, which distracted her mind from things like unfaithful, back-stabbing men. "I'm glad you like it sweetie. Be careful. They're hot." She watched as I took small bites. She was right. The triangles were pretty hot. But as I ate it, it warmed up my body, a feeling I needed after today's events. "So honey how was your day?"

My appetite lessened temporarily at the thought of having to work with Jace. I looked at her and shrugged. "It was alright. Something happened during Music. I'll tell you after I finish these," lifting up the triangle in my hand. I was a slow eater and so this gave me time to think about what I would say to my mum about the music assignment.

After 15 minutes, I had an empty china plate in front of me. I took a tissue, wiping the oil off my fingertips. I started "Well, I ran into someone today and broke my watch." My mum looked at my now-bare wrist. "It took it off at school," I explained. Mum nodded but didn't respond. I continued "And today in Music, we were given an assignment. A really important one. And I've been paired with the worst possible partner." My mum gave me a curious look. "He's called Jace Herondale. He's cocky and arrogant and he doesn't work hard. In fact, I doubt he works at all. He's always at the bottom of each class. Lucky for you, you will most likely have the honour of meeting him because we'll have to work outside of school in our free time." I cringed at the thought of having Jace in my home. Or me being in his home. I wondered just for a second, what would Jace's home look like? Word was that Jace belonged in wealthy family. Would he live in a mansion? Would his room be filthy?

My mum nodded again. "Well, hopefully, you'll figure it out between the two of you." She took my hand. "Don't let anything stop you from getting what you want. Especially a boy. He's not worth it. Find a way to deal with it alright? Pass the assignment and forget about him."

I nodded and gave my mum what I hoped was a reassuring smile. "Alright mum. I'll try. But don't be surprised if police show up on our doorstep one day, demanding that I be arrested for the murder of certain blonde boy," I joked.

Mum gave a small laugh, but I could tell that she was concerned with me. I would try to fix things with Jace. Or at least try to work with him. I didn't want mum to be worried about me. I would show her that everything was alright.

I picked my plate, stood up and walked over to the island bench. Our floor looked spotless which meant that mum had gone through the long and tedious process of sweeping and mopping the floor twice. That would've taken over 2 hours. The tiles gleamed under the lights.

I placed the plate in the sink and turned to my mum. "I'm going to do my homework now."

She nodded."Alright honey. I'll call you when dinner is ready."

As I walked back up the stairs I noticed that there was something about my mum's expression that was different from before. Something wrong.

…

I had never really liked my grade. Apart from Simon. All of them always tried to be someone they're not. The fake smiles, the makeup, the overly cheery voices. Like seriously. It's so obvious that they're being fake. And the majority were all so naïve.

Everyone had begun teasing me because Seelie told them to. Seelie must've twisted our meeting into something completely unreal. I had heard people point to me and whisper to their friends, saying stuff like 'Can you believe she poured nail polish onto Seelie? Why would she do that? Seelie's so nice!' Like what the actual heck?! I didn't even do that! And some people were enough to believe Seelie's exaggerated story. Others just wanted Seelie to like them, or not hate them because whoever messed with Seelie would be screwed. As you can see from me. They bullied me for no reason. But they wouldn't care. I was just some low, sad, boring- I stopped that thought. _No woman. Don't think like that. If Simon was here, then he would definitely give you another 'you are worthy' lecture_. If I ever started about me not being good enough, Simon would give me a 30 minute lecture. He would start with 'Clarissa Morgenstern-Fray' and then he would go full on into this lecture about never saying that I was not 'good enough' or that 'no one liked me.'

And when Simon tried to be serious, his face would scrunch up and his eyes would always be changing. To be fair, he looked hilarious. And he knew it too. Almost every lecture ended with us on the floor, holding our stomachs as we laughed hard, tears streaming down our face.

I bent down, fishing the phone out of my bag. I looked through my contacts, stopping at Simon's name. I put my phone against my ear, hoping that he would answer. I desperately needed to speak with my best friend. Whenever I wanted to complain about the twelvies of my school, I would call Simon because he understood how I felt, and so he would quietly listen on the other end, occasionally throwing in a few 'yea' s and 'hmm's, until I finished my rant.

It rang once. Twice. Thrice. Simon picked up halfway through the fourth ring.

"I hate our grade" I said immediately. I said that line way too often, but it always mirrored how I felt. I did hate our grade. They were just…no.

"Well Fray, hello to you too. If it makes you feel any better, I don't like our grade either."

"Thanks Simon. I seem to think that we're the only ones who think like that. Great minds think alike right?"I heard laughter on the other end. "But I'm afraid I have bad news for you. I won't be doing music in uni."

"Woah what Fray? Did your mum say something? Cause I can come over and talk to her. You know she loves me. She'll listen to me. I bet you."

"Simon. It wasn't my mum. She encourages me remember? And she so does _not_ love you. She just likes you." I heard Simon scoff on the other end.

"Think what you wish. I know the truth and it's all that matters."

I ignored that comment. Love was a strong word. Sure, my mum liked Simon, but love? That was stretching it a bit. "Anyway, we were handed a music assignment today and Branwell picked our partners." Between Simon and I, we always just called our teacher by their last name, dropping the 'Mr.' or 'Mrs.'

"Oh Clary. Let me guess. Is it by any chance someone who's name sounds oddly like Smeliorn? I send you my deepest condolences." Smeliorn was the nickname that we had given Meliorn. We had been calling him that behind his back for over a year now and I strongly doubted that we were the only ones creative enough to come up with the nickname.

We came up with it when Simon complained with me one day and the horrible body odour of Meliorn during Sport.

"No Simon. I'd rather it be him I got-" I was cut off when Simon screamed on the other end.

"YES BECCA. PAY ME THE MONEY!"

I winced at the volume. "Let me guess. You're playing Monopoly with Becca again right?" Rebecca was Simon's smaller sister and he loved her to bits. But he was still evil. He knew that she wasn't good at Monopoly so he always played the game with her so he could make her bankrupt within 6 rounds. But Becca would always play with him, knowing that it made him happy. I had asked her once why she played Monopoly with him all the time when she knew she would lose. She had answered saying that it made her happy seeing her brother happy. I loved Becca a lot. She was like the little sister that I never had. Simon was always kind to her. But when it came to Monopoly, he was ruthless and merciless. Poor Becca

"Yea. And I'm smashing her." _Psh. When are you not?_ "She just landed on Barossa and I have 3 houses on that. Anyway, who's your partner?"

I spat out his name. "Jace Herondale."

"Woah. Clary. That's really bad. Did you talk to Branwell about it?"

"Yea. I asked him if I would work alone."

"Judging by your overly cheerful voice, he said no?"

I sighed. "Yea. I told him that Jace and I had issues and we wouldn't be able to work together. But he said we would have to put the issues aside and somehow work together. He didn't even consider what I said. But funnily enough, my mum said the same thing."

"Oh I knew Branwell was secretly evil under all that facial hair. But if your mum said the same thing, then they're probably right. You never know. Maybe you could get some stuff out of him. Just think of it as working undercover as a detective. But you know, if he does annoy you again, just raise an eyebrow. That should scare him into listening to you."

I laughed. "Shut up Simon. I can't look that bad right?" I always saw people raising an eyebrow and I thought it looked cool so I decided to try it one time when I was talking to Simon. Apparently, and I quote, I looked 'constipated'.

"Oh it was that bad. I thought there was something wrong like you had diarrhoea. But you weren't running around, looking for a bathroom or anything and I realised what you were doing. Ugh. It was horrifying."

"Simon. We're getting off topic. Can we please continue t-"

"THAT'S RIGHT BECCA. GO TO JAIL! And please enjoy your stay." His voice changed from a scream to a kind innocent voice. Oh my poor Becca.

"Clary. Becca just went to jail. Again. And this time, I have a feeling she's going to be in there for a while."

"Uh huh Simon, whatever you say. But what am I going to do about Jace?"

"What are _you_ going to do? I think the real question is, what is _he_ going to do? With your killer glare and your intimidating size, I don't know if he'll survive. Oh I'm getting Goosebumps jus thinking about it."

"Wow Simon. Glad to know that you're on my side."

"Hehe. Sorry. I have to go now because I have a crisis. Somehow Becca just got out of jail and she has a monopoly now. You can come over and we'll talk about it later ok?"

"Alright Simon. Please go easy on Becca. She's only a child."

I heard him laugh before the call ended. I took out my English workbook and the book that we were currently studying.

As I was writing the answer to one of the Frankenstein questions, my phone buzzed. I picked it up, expecting to see a text from Simon. But it was an unknown number. It read:

**Hey shortie. You're quite feisty for someone your size ;)**

**Wonder who that could be? Well, plz review! I'm hoping for a few more reviews this time. Thnks.**

**Have fun with your life.**


	6. Author's Note

**Author's note**

**Hey guys. So I'm going to be going on a cruise from the 23****rd**** of January to the 4****th**** of February. I'm not sure whether I should update when I'm on the cruise so if you could pls review, telling me whether you want me to update then or not cause it'll be a while. **

**Thanks guys!**

**DelaCruzBane**


	7. Chapter 6

**Hey guys. So I have good news. My dad is going to get wi-fi on the cruise which means that I can update. Yay! Thanks to all the people who read/follow/fave/review! Much love.**

**Disclaimer: None of these amazing characters belong to me.**

Chapter 6

**Hey shortie. You're quite feisty for someone your size ;) **

Huh? Who was this? I didn't recognise the number but the wink reminded me strongly of someone. _No. It can't be. _I reluctantly replied, both scared and curious. But what if it was him? No. How could he get my number?

**Who is this?**

**L**ess than a minute later, Mr Mysterious responded. _Oi. Why Mr? It would be a girl. It's not him. It _can't _be him._

**I don't know but according to someone, I'm someone who doesn't who doesn't give a crap about anyone but me. Ring any bells?**

I groaned. Oh no. It was looking more like what I thought. _It's okay. Maybe it's just a coincidence._ But who else did I say that to?

**Name plz.**

**Jace Herondale ;)**

Omigosh. What is this? How did he get my number?! He couldn't have gotten it from any of his friends. None of them would've had my number. Wait. Only Simon had my number. What?

**How did you get my number?!**

His response popped up a second later.

**I have my sources ;) **

Ugh. He was so annoying. And why did he put that winking emoticon after every message? I just wanted to forget about this, put my phone away and finish my homework. But if I did, Jace would probably think that I'm too scared to talk to him. Psh. I'm not scared. _You wanna talk Golden Boy? Alright. Let's talk._

**What do you want Golden Boy? I have better things to do.**

**What like homework?**

What? Why would he say that? Another response popped up.

**See how I didn't wink? It means I was serious.**

My insides boiled. I cursed at the phone, as if it was Jace.

**No Golden Boy. My life does not revolve around homework.**

**Really? I didn't know that shortie. I thought your life consisted of studying and talking with your bf 24/7 ;)**

I looked at the abbreviation in confusion. Bf? What did they mean again? I jolted in shock at the realisation of the abbreviation. Boyfriend? I didn't have a boyfriend!

I typed back. **…Who is my boyfriend?**

**You tell me. The one with the big glasses and the brown hair. What was his name?**

Was he talking about Simon? Yea. He fit very vague description. But there were so many guys who fit that description. But then again, Simon was the only person I hung out with…

**Do you mean Simon?**

**Oh yea. That guy.**

**He is **_**not**_** my boyfriend. What do you want? Texting you isn't for free. You're wasting my credit.**

**Fine shortie. I'll call you. We have to talk about the Music assignment.**

I groaned at the thought of working on the assignment. Well, not really the assignment itself. Just the partner. My phone started vibrating, my power rangers' theme ringtone playing. According to my mum, I had watched power rangers since I was 4. I knew everything about them, the people, the songs and the dances. I think I even had their costumes at one stage. Even though I had grown up, I still watched an episode or 2 whenever I was free.

I picked up, hoping it wasn't a mistake. "Hurry up and talk. I haven't got all day." I had all night. I could multitask, which meant I'd be able to finish my homework while talking to Jace. So my night was basically free, unless I wanted to see Simon. But Jace didn't need to know that.

"Wow shortie. I wasn't aware that you had a life."

_Ass._ "You don' know anything about me Golden Boy. Now are we going to talk about the assignment or not?"

"Alright. Well, I know you feel somewhat…unwilling to be partners with me for the assignment." I scoffed. Unwilling? That was putting it pretty light. And where was he going with this?

He paused for a second, hearing me, then went on. "but trust me Carrot, I don't like it either. I'm not very keen at the thought of having to work with you. But we both want to pass this so we're going to have to deal with each other alright?"

Wow. I was getting this talk from _Jace?_ Not I was expecting. But he wasn't finished.

"You may not believe when I say this, but I actually really want to pass this assignment. I have plans for a future ok?"

I was about to make sarcastic remark but his tone of voice stopped me. He sounded serious.

"I know you'll work with me if I don't act like a-"

I couldn't help it. The words just flew out of my mouth. "A total ass?"

Jace have a short laugh. And I could've sworn it was a bitter one. But I was probably wrong. Jace? Bitter? Ha.

"Yea. You can put it that way. So I'll try alright? Please just give me a chance."

Was Jace on drugs? Or was he drunk? I had never seen him act so weird before. But he didn't sound drunk… He was probably trying to prank me. _I'm not stupid Golden Boy._

"You are beyond hilarious Golden Boy." And then I hung up. What. An. Ass. Why did he even bother? Anger rose inside me. Wasn't mocking me all day at school enough already? But no, he had to give me false hope. _You could try telling him how important the assignment is. _Ha. That would totally work. He would probably just reply with something like "aren't all assignments important to you?" I could totally picture the scene. He'd smirk at me while his friends laughed around him, acting like they actually knew what was going on.

As the imaginary scene played out in my mind, my anger grew stronger. But it wasn't just directed at Jace. It was at Branwell, Jace's idiotic friends and the Gods. Why?! I screamed in my mind, looking up, as if I was looking right at the gods. Do you _want _to ruin my life?! My one-sided conversation was interrupted when mum called from downstairs.

"Clary? Dinner's ready. Come downstairs."

"Alright mum. I'm coming," I called back. I stood up and walked downstairs, pushing the horrid thoughts to the back of my mind

…

"Hey mum. I'm going to Simon's. Thanks for the amazing dinner." Mum had made a Thai curry with sticky rice with a side dish of capsicum salad. Mum had always liked cooking foods from different cultures. This was the first time mum had tried making Thai food and to say I was a success would be a _huge_ understatement. The lamb in the curry was tender and filled with flavour and the capsicums were crispy and sweet. The meal was absolutely delicious. "I'll be back before 10 ok?" I called over the clatter of the dishes.

Simon and I lived less than 5 streets away. It would take me less than 10 minutes to walk to his house. It took even less time for Simon with his long legs. Whenever we walked together, I would always have to power walk in order to match his step.

"Alright Clary. Be careful. And bring a coat. It's quite windy outside." Mum was in the kitchen, washing the dishes. Again. After I just washed them. I made sure to wash the dishes before I left for Simon's house. But mum always believed that I wouldn't wash the dishes properly. 'I don't want to get poisoned' my mum would say. _Why do I even bother? It's just a waste of time._

"But mum. It's not even cold." I'd have to go _all_ the way upstairs to get a coat. Ugh. Can't be bothered.

Mum looked up from the dishes. "Clary. Go get a coat." Her voice left no room for argument.

"Ugh fine." I walked upstairs and took a random coat. I probably wouldn't wear it anyway. It was a beige coloured button-up coat that went down to my knees. I looked down and realised that I was still in my pj's. Huh. How did I not realise? I guess I would have to wear the coat. My pj's weren't flashy or anything, but people on the street would find it really weird. Simon wouldn't though. He'd seen my pyjama's before. I'd just take it off when I get to his house. As I walked down the stairs mum said "Clary, I might have to go out later so take the keys with you just in case I'm not home when you get back." She nodded towards the counter where the keys were. I glanced at the clock on the wall above the kitchen table. It was almost seven. Where was mum going? I decided not to ask. I grabbed the keys and headed out the door. "Bye mum."

…

I knocked on the door thrice. A moment later, a woman looking in her mid-forties, opened the door. She had a mop in one hand and a duster in another. Her curly brown hair was loosely tied in a ponytail. Her hazel brown eyes looked at me and a smile broke out on her face. It was Simon's mother. "Hi Clary. Simon didn't tell me you were coming. Come on in."

I walked in, shrugging off my coat. "Hey Allison. How are you?"

"I'm great. But as you can see, I'm currently a bit busy." She lifted up the mop and duster. That was an odd combination I thought. Mop and duster?

"I'll talk to you later. I have a batch of cookies baking. "Once she mentioned the cookies, I smelt them. It was like the cookies were saying _smell me. I'm delicious._ Allison also liked to cook and she was quite good. But not as good as mum.

"I'll call you down once they're ready. Simon should be in his room."

I nodded. "Thanks Allison." I started up the stairs but Simon's mum stopped me.

"And Clary?"

I turned back. "Yea?"

She grinned. "I liked your pj's."

I grinned back. "I know. Thanks." As she turned around I thought maybe I should buy her a pair. Heck, maybe I should buy their whole family a pair each. I mean, it's not like their expensive. I made my way up the stairs, giggling as I pictured Simon in pink pj's.

As I got closer to Simon's room, I heard music coming out. Usually, Simon's music would be blasting out of his room but the fact that I could only hear the music from _outside_ his room meant that either Rebecca or Mr Lewis was sleeping.

I knocked on his door twice but there was no response. I twisted the knob, and to my surprise, the door opened. Simon always liked to lock the door so he could either study or play videogames in peace. "Simon?" I looked into the room, only to find Simon sitting at his table with headphones on, fingers tapping furiously on the mouse and keyboard.

So that's why he didn't open the door I thought. _He can't even hear me._ I called his name again. Still no reply. I walked in quietly up to him then put both my hands on his shoulders. He screamed a high-pitched one and almost shot out of the chair. His headphones slid down to his to his neck and he turned around, his face looking a bit pale._ Whoops? _

"Clary! Don't do that! You scared the freaks out of me! I'm going to die of a heart attack. And it'll be _your fault_._" _His voice deepened as he said the last two words.

I laughed. "Simon. You sound _really_ constipated," trying to imitate his low voice.

"Well, with your eyebrow raise and my deep voice we'd make a very good couple. CC. Constipated couple. Has a nice ring to it don't you think?"

I smacked him on the arm."No Simon. Just no. Who could want to be called the constipated couple? That's so dodgy. Besides you of course," I added when Simon opened his mouth to speak. "Anyway, let's talk business. Jace."

"Oh, so Jace is _your_ business huh?" Simon waggled his eyebrows in a suggestive manner.

I smacked him again, but harder this time. Me and Jace? Pah, what a joke! The thought made me want to puke right then and there... "Your disgusting Simon. He's not even. And he never will be. Trust me. If I start liking him, you can kill me yourself alright? You know, somehow he found my number and then texted me." I meant to say it as if Jace was creepy but somehow Simon interpreted it differently.

"Oh? So you guys are texting already. CC! And I don't mean constipated."

I rolled my eyes and ignored him. "And then he called me because I was complaining that he was wasting my credit." I ignored Simon's wolfish grin and resisted the urge to smack him. "And he was like 'Oh I'm sorry. I'll try my best. Please give me another chance. I'm not an ass.' Which you and I both know is _so_ not true. "

"So what did you do? Are you going to give him another chance?"

"Ha no. I told him that he was hilarious. And then I hung up."

Simon's face turned serious. "Clary, your re a badass. I'm proud of you."

I laughed. _How dull life would be if Simon wasn't here._

"Ok, so I have a plan," said Simon.

I looked at him intently, though I doubted that it would be a legit plan.

"Whenever you have to spend time with him, show him that you are a very hardworking and independent woman. And that you will get whatever you want. Show him that you're not afraid of him. And then just tell him 'If you stand in my way I will'-"

"Distort you face," I finished, smiling as I thought back o a very pleasant conversation.

"Not what I had in mind but that could work."

"Alright Simon, I'll try this plan of yours. But if one day, he somehow ends up in a hospital because of" I shrugged nonchalantly, "I dunno, broken nose or something, don't go looking for me."

Simon smiled cheekily. "Alright Clary. It'll be our little secret."

"But," I warned, "If you let that out, I will have to kill you."

Simon looked grave. "I understand Miss Fray."

"So," I said, putting on a cheerful voice,"You wanna play COD?I bet I can beat you. Again."

Simon took 2 controllers out of his drawer. "Oh, it's on.

I had never really liked the games that Simon played, but for some reason, Call of Duty interested me.

We played for 2 hours, only stopping when Allison called us down to have cookies. I saw that Becca didn't come downstairs so I asked Simon where she was. He smirked and said "She went to sleep after I _smashed _her in Monopoly. Again."

After thanking Allison for the cookies, we went back upstairs to continue the game. I didn't realise how fast time went by until I looked t the clock. "Holy cow, it's almost ten! I have to get back before mum freaks." I gave the controller back to Simon and picked up my coat. "Bye Simon. See you at school tomorrow."

He waved goodbye. As I closed the door I said "See?Told you I would win." I walked downstairs and called into the kitchen where Allison was cleaning. "Thanks Allison. Drop by our house when you're free ok?"

She smiled and said "I will Clary. Be careful when going back home. And say Hi to your mum for me."

I nodded and left.I shrugged on my coat as the chilly wind blew through my flannel pyjamas. _So mum was right. Like she always is. _I walked back, hands in pockets, feeling happier then I was 4 hours ago.

**Ok. That's chapter 6. Please f & f and review! Also, if you guys want me to write a chapter or 2 about different shippings eg. Sizzy or Malec, just review and tell me k?**

**Bane**


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

**Hey. So this is chapter 7. We've passed the 50 review mark! I'm so happy! Thanks to all who have reviewed and support this story. Ily! And I bought the Shadow World guide for 5 bucks and the city of glass for 5 bucks also. Thank the Lord!**

"Mum, I'm back." I walked into the kitchen and poured myself a cup of water. "Mum?" Still no response. I couldn't hear any noise from upstairs. _Maybe mum's sleeping. _I rinsed the cup and went upstairs creeping quietly and carefully so I wouldn't make any noise in case she was sleeping. _But her shoes weren't at the bottom of the staircase…_ Mum had made a rule that there were to be no shoes upstairs because the floor was wooden, which meant that mum couldn't get the floor wet without damaging the wood.

I opened the door to mum's room which was diagonal to mine. The room was quite dark but the light from the moon shone through the window, giving me enough light to see that there wasn't anyone on the king sized bed.

When dad was still here, mum had said that she liked to sleep on a big bed. So dad had changed the queen sized bed to a king sized one. I had expected mum to change to a smaller bed once dad had left. But mum had kept the same bed. Almost as if she was waiting for dad to return. But I knew that was never happening. _How do you know that? Mate, the world doesn't revolve around your hormonal emotions. _I pushed the thoughts away. I wasn't going to let my dad ruin my good night. _See dad? You can enrage people even from 350 kilometres away._

Where was mum? And then I remembered that mum had said she'd be out._ But it's already so late._ I walked to my room and sat at my table, pulling out my school timetable. I always liked to pack mu books the night before so I could sleep for longer in the morning.

_1st period: Language_

_2__nd__ period: Mathematics_

_3__rd__ period: Music_

_4__th__ period: Art_

_5__th__ period: English_

_6__th__ period: Health_

Damn. Music. And the day was looking to be so good. I sighed. Music was becoming a subject wished I had never picked. At least we'd be doing theory this period which meant that I wouldn't have to talk to Jace. I put all the books in my bag and looked at the small clock on my table. It was 10:30. And mum still wasn't back. I stayed up a while, hoping to be there when mum came home so I could ask her where she was. I rearranged the books on my bookshelf and swept the already-spotless floor. Why wasn't mum back? I looked at the clock again. 5 to 11. If I stayed up any later, I would probably fall asleep during class. I went to the bathroom and brushed my teeth. Then I went to sleep, feeling worried and uneasy.

…

I woke to the smell of pancakes. _Well, at least that means that mum got home._ I brushed my teeth, washed my face and took my school uniform out of my wardrobe. After putting it on, I looked at myself in the floor-length mirror. People I knew all hated their school uniform. But I loved mine. The other schools had horrible colour combinations like green and yellow, maroon and blue or even _brown_ and blue. Like seriously. What kind of combinations were those? But St Idris? Girls had a simple white collared blouse and a black and white chequered skirt. It just looked so casual. I brushed through my frizzy, flaming hair and put it in a ponytail.

"Morning mum," I said walking downstairs. Mum looked at me. She smiled tiredly at me. She had bags under her eyes. _When had mum come home last night?_

"Good morning sweetie. Would you like strawberries with your pancakes?" She said, lifting up a white plate that was topped with pancakes. I nodded absently, not really paying any attention. Where had mum gone?

Mum put the plate and a bottle of golden syrup on the table.

"Mum?"

"Hmm?" She turned around.

"Where were you last night? I waited for you until 11 but you still didn't come back."

Mum wiped her hands and looked away. "I had some errands to run. Sorry I came home so late. You shouldn't have waited for me." _She's avoiding my eyes. _Mum was hiding something from me, which was really rare. Ever since dad left, mum told me everything. I knew she was lying. But what was I going to do? Torture her until she told me?_ Oh yea, cause that would work well._ "Alright mum. I just wanted to make sure you were ok. You look really tired."

She rubbed her eyes and gave a tired sigh. "Yeah. I slept pretty late last night."

"Mum, you should get some rest. You look _really _bad." Mum sighed again and nodded. "I'll catch up on some sleep once you leave."

I nodded and finished my pancakes, thinking about where mum could've gone. I only realised once I got to school that mum had work today. So how could she sleep once I left?

…

"Bonne classe du matin. Comment etes-vous tous?" Good morning class. How have you all been? We were learning about the grammatical differences between French and English. I understood some of it. Other parts confused me. So when the bell rang, signalling the end of 1st period and the beginning of 2nd period, I was a bit glad. Math was next. Today, we were learning to identify rational and irrational numbers. I had learnt it all already. I had some weird connection with Math. I could understand it really well. I could read it once and I'd know how to do the questions. I memorised formulas with a glance. It was weird. At least it meant I couldn't fail math.

Recess passed quickly with Simon talking about Meliorn's stench during Sport. _Poor poor Simon_. The recess bell rang, and I was reluctant to go to 3rd period, which was Music. Halfway to music, I saw Jace on the other side of the hallway, coming towards where I was standing. Hoping he hadn't seen me, I walked faster, wanting to get away from him.

…

"Good morning class."

A few mumbled greeting came from the students. Mr Branwell was standing in front of his desk, leaning against it.

"Today, we will be doing a few exercises on cadences." _Yes_. Playing piano and accordion for over 10 years had its advantages. In order to get my certificate, I had to pass 4th grade musicianship. I had learnt a lot in the process which meant that theory during school was all revision to me.

"Now. These exercises won't take long because they're not too difficult so I'll only be giving you half of this period. You can spend the other half of the lesson with your partner, working on the assignment." _Dang_. Smiles broke out on people's faces. _See? I can't do that because my teacher is secretly evil and gave me the crappiest partner in crapping history._

We all worked on the exercises quietly. I finished 10 minutes before anyone else. I sat there, listening to the squeak of pens writing. I looked at everyone, though most of them had their heads down. In the corner of my eye, I saw a head lift up. I looked to see who it was. He looked back at me. _Great_. I looked away before he did anything, which would probably get me angry, which would most likely result in us not getting any work done. Again.

"Alright. Time's up. Just give me the sheet to me and you can start working on your assignment."

Everyone stood up and started towards the teacher's desk. Some even started running to get t the desk first. Wow, they were all so eager to get into the assignment. If only I could feel the same way. I gave my sheet to Mr Branwell and he gave me an encouraging smile. _He knows I hate this_. I stood near the table as everyone else gave their sheets to the teacher. When everybody had left, I moved to stand in front of the desk where I would be able to talk to Sir.

"Sir, would you tell me why you partnered me with Jace when you _know _that we're on _very_ shaky ground." Just looking at the others made me upset. Why did the gods hate me? I mean, even Jace got some enjoyment out of being partnered with me. He could tease and infuriate me and I wouldn't be able to do anything about it. Mr Branwell looked at me."Well Clary I can't tell you. But if it works out, you will most likely find out on your own. I do hope you pass Clary. You're a great student and I would love to have you in year 11 and 12." What was that supposed to mean? If he knows I'm good enough to pass, did he pair me up with Jace as a _challenge?_ My HSC could depend on this assignment and he decided to _challenge_ me now?! How could he do this to me? What if I failed? I resisted the urge the scream at Mr Branwell. I nodded curtly and said "I understand Mr Branwell. I will try my hardest."

He gave me another encouraging smile and I swear I could've killed him this moment. Did he think this was a joke?! I sighed and prepared myself. Then I turned around. And walked into Jace. I stepped back from the impact and hit the edge of the teacher's desk. Ow. I took a small step forward so I was in between the desk and Jace. I didn't even want to know what he was doing behind me. Probably eavesdropping. I glared daggers at him. "If you have nothing proper to say, don't say anything. Understand?" I didn't wait for an answer. "Good. We have work to do. Let's go."

Without waiting to see if he followed me or not, I walked towards and empty corner. I sat down and to my relief- _wait, why relief?_ - He sat down too. I scooted away from him, wanting to get as far away as possible from him. Which at the moment was only a metre. _Oh gosh, what if he's contagious? I'll be damned for life! _I took my bag and pulled out my music book and pen, hoping to be able to write some ideas for the assignment. _Oh Clary, you little optimist._ He looked at my book and raised an eyebrow. I glared at him, hoping he got my message. _Don't say a word. _He did. He smirked but didn't say anything.

"So," I started, "Branwell said the song has to be in between 3 and 4 minutes. We have to write the piece for 7 orchestral instruments. I was thinking the violin, clarinet and piano because it'll help with the melody. You can the other 4 instruments though I suggest that you pick a percussion instrument so it can play the beat." He gave me a blank look and didn't say anything. _Gosh, it must be so hard for him to make a sarcastic remark._ "Dude, pick the instruments. We have to get _something_ done today. At this rate, we're going to give in a blank sheet for the assignment." He continued to look at me. "Fine, I'll do all the work then. That's alright with me. I mean, I wasn't expecting anything else from someone like you. The drums, the cello, the sax and-"

"Guitar."

My gosh. Was he some dumb? The guitar isn't an orchestral instrument. How could he not know that? Why was he even doing music?

He stood up. "I'll talk to Mr Branwell." What? Did he think the teacher was going to let him? The assignment was so important. Mr Branwell wouldn't bend the rules. Not for anyone. Especially not Jace. I looked towards the front of the classroom, where the teacher's desk was. Jace had his back to me but I could see the teacher. He said something then smiled. Then he and Jace shook hands. _No way_. Did Mr Branwell let him? But that couldn't be possible. The other partners would most surely find out and complain at one point. Jace walked back and confirmed my thoughts. He grinned and shrugged. He sat back down.

"The teacher gave me permission." He said is so nonchalantly, I swear he knew what was going to happen. Before I could ask, the bell rang. He stood back up again and looked down at me. "I always get what I want." Then he paused for a second. "Well, most of the time." Then he left with a smirk. What had Jace meant? Most of the time? Getting what he wanted? I didn't know what he was talking about. But I knew one thing.

Jace Herondale was an arrogant son of a *****.

…

Art was one of my favourite subjects because I understood it. I had inherited my mum's artistic skills. In my spare time, I drew sketches of landscapes, people and objects. I had an art diary, though I hadn't drawn in it in over 3 months. One day I thought. When something interesting happens in my life.

Mum had always loved drawing pictures of our family. But mum hadn't drawn anything since the day dad left. I kept on drawing, refusing to let my father take away yet another part of my life.

Today, we continued to work on our landscape project. Our grade wasn't very artistic so there were only three people in my class: Me, Tessa Gray and James Carstairs. They were both friends so as usual, I was alone. But I didn't mind. It meant I could concentrate. Sometimes, we exchanged a few words. They were both in Seelie's group though like Isabelle, they looked uncomfortable. Tessa was a really smart girl so I didn't understand why she hung around Seelie.

I had picked a church in New York for my landscape. The church always amazed me. The structure was incredible and unique and it looked beautiful. However, to the other people, it was looked like another old, rotting building. I was hoping to capture the building's beauty if my artwork ended up the way I wanted it to.

Jem and Tessa were both drawing the same place but from different perspectives: The Blackfriars Bridge in London. I didn't know why they chose that place but they both seemed to have a connection to it.

After class ended, I walked to Simon's locker. He'd always put his bag in his locker before lunch because he thought people would steal stuff while he was eating. _Like what even?_ I didn't have a locker because I always thought they were for lazy people, who weren't bothered enough to carry their books around all day. Also because they were really dirty and I wouldn't be bothered making trips to my locker anyway. Ironic eh?

I found Simon putting his bag in his locker. "Hey Clary."

"Hey. Come on. Let's get lunch." He nodded, and together we walked to the cafeteria. After buying lunch, we sat down at our usual table. The table was meant for eight people but it was always just us two. But I didn't mind. More space for me, myself and I. I started unwrapping the foil on my sandwich. Tomato, cheese and ham. Was that not the best combination in the entire world? I worshipped the person who invented this combination.

"So I had Music today. And surprisingly, we got something done. We figured out what instruments we were going to write for. But at the end, Jace said something really dodgy. He was like 'I always get what I want. Most of the time.' What do you think he means by that Simon?" I looked up from my now-unwrapped sandwich.

"Well, I think he means that he gets what he wants most of the time." I rolled my eyes.

"Gee, you don' say Sherlock."

Simon shrugged. "What else can I say? I don't know anything about your-" His jaw dropped suddenly and he looked at something behind me. I turned around and realised that it wasn't some_thing. _It was some_one. _Or some _people_. I saw 4 figures, two male and two female, walking towards us. That _never_ happened. And as they got closer to us, I saw their faces.

What did _they_ want with _us_?

**Ok. So that was chapter 7. Man, my chapter just keep getting longer. Is that a good thing or not? I may be able to update once before the cruise. After that, I'll update as soon as I can on the cruise. Plz review and f&f. Can I hope for 60+ reviews?**

**Much Love!**


	9. AN

**Hey guys,**

**So I was writing the next chapter when I thought 'it would be more interesting if I wrote about other ships in the story.' So I decided that I would write a chapter or 2 for the other ships from TID/TMI and relate it to the story/plotline. I'm open to suggestions so review and tell me who you would like me to write about. Personally, my favourite ship of all time is Malec. Who's with me?**

**Cheers,**

**Marina**


	10. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

**Hello all! I'm sorry that I haven't updated in so long. The wifi was ridiculously expensive so my dad didn't buy extra but now I have it! Muahaha. So this is chapter 8. I actually had more in this chapter but I changed parts and by the first half, it was already 3000 words so I decided to put the other half as chapter 9. The cruise was nice. Very nice. For anyone who hasn't been on one, I suggest you go. It's so fun. But we were meant to go to Noumea, New Caledonia but apparently there's a big cyclone so we had to cancel. But that means more time for me to write chapter 10 and 11! I do hope you enjoy this chapter. And I'm thinking about putting a Sizzy chapter in soon. And then a Wessa one. Anyone disagree? Pls Review!**

What did they want with us? I went through the week in my mind, looking for any sign, any reason that would make _them_ come to _us._ Were they sent here by Seelie?

William, Tessa, Jem and Isabelle. I didn't know what to say or do. Why were they here? Did they want something from us? I looked at Simon, hoping to find and answer. But his mouth was open wide, eyes glued to one spot. I looked in that direction. _Of course. What else did I expect?_ I swear his eyes were going to pop out if he looked at her any longer.

"Simon" I said, as they got closer and closer to our table. "What do they want? Did something happen between you and them? What do they want?" I repeated.

"She's coming," he whispered. Then he suddenly broke out of his reverie and looked at me. He smoothed his white button up shirt. "Clary, how do I look?"

I nodded. "You look fine Simon." His expression grew frantic.

"Fine? That's not good enough!" I had never seen Simon like this before. He was never nervous. He wasn't nervous when he waited for his dad to come out of the surgery room. He never acted like this before. He really, legitimately liked this girl. And it kinda scared me. If he acted like this when she walked towards him, how would he act when they went on a date? He took his bag and stood up, ready to flee. I pulled him back down, forcing him to sit back down. I was _not_ going to deal with this alone.

"Simon calm down," I hissed. "You looked great. Calm you farm, settle your kettle. I'd say take a chill pill but I know you don't have any left and the nearest pharmacy from here is a while away." I said, trying to help calm him down. Luckily, it worked. He gave me a weak smile and took a deep breath. I gave him a reassuring smile. "It's going to be okay. She's probably here for something trivial." I searched for an example but nothing came up. Maybe it had to do with the fact that I didn't _know_ why they were here. Simon nodded nervously but didn't say anything.

They stood in front of our table and Tessa started the conversation. "Hey Clary. Can we talk?"

"You mean alone?" I immediately regretted asking the question. _Of course not you dummy. If she did, would she have come with another 3 people?_

She shook her head. "No. All of us. Do you mind if we sit?" I shook my head. They sat down, Will and Tessa on my side, Jem and Isabelle on Simon's side. Isabelle was sitting next to Simon and they're shoulders were just centimetres away from touching. Simon looked like he was going to start hyperventilating. I gave him a _Simon-calm-your-pooping-farm _look. Luckily he understood me because he took a deep breath and visibly calmed down.

"I wanted to apologise," she began. She looked at her friends. "We all did." I gave her a questioning look.

"For what?"I asked. They had never done anything to me. I jolted in realisation. That's right. They never did anything to me or Simon. I thought about all the times where Seelie and her gang had verbally and physically harassed me, realising that none of them had ever been there, with the exception of Will. But he had never actually said a word to me before, at least not in front of me before. "For what?" I repeated. "You never said or did anything to me. In fact, I doubt we've even ever had a proper conversation before."

"Exactly. We never did anything." I looked at her, my eyes saying _and what do you mean by that?_ Jem stepped in. "What Tessa means is Seelie always told us to tease you. But we never wanted to so we always left whenever they planned to mock you. But what we should have been doing was trying to stop them, to tell them that what they're doing is wrong. But we never did it because well I guess we were scared of her. But Tessa spoke to me one day and came up with an amazing idea. "

"I was just getting so sick of Seelie." Tessa said. "She's such a b-word. She's spoilt, ignorant, rude, and thinks she owns the world. I just- I'm so tired of her attitude. And I heard her talking about you the other day and something in me just went off. I thought about how stupid I was when I was scared of her. So I went to Will, Jem and Izzy and told them if we could just leave. I mean it's not like Seelie owns us or anything. We can leave whenever we want right? Like we're not her b-words that she can use to do her dirty work. I mean, who she thinks she is!" Jem softly called her name over the table. She stopped her rant and gave him a grateful look. "Sorry. Sometimes I just can't control myself. You know how I feel Clary?"

I didn't know why she asked me but thankfully I could relate to her. I nodded. "It's okay. I used to do that with Simon all the time. But one da I realised that it did no good. I was just wasting time and energy so I just stopped. You know, their taunts don't hurt anymore because they say the same things all the time. It used to piss me off when they said that stuff but now I just shrug it off."

"But still, I'm sorry That Seelie and her friends caused you so much pain."

Simon spoke up, for the first time since they all sat down. "Aren't you her friends?"

"We _were_." Izzy said. "She was a great friend at the start of high school. But she saw that she had friends and people thought she was pretty so she started acting arrogant and all. But it got even worse and she and Jace started dating. She went cray cray." Izzy rotated her index fingers, pointed towards her head. "You know how I feel right?"

Maybe Simon didn't notice the fact that she was pointing the question at me because he nodded vigorously and said: "I feel you Isabelle." Then a moment later, realising what he had just said, his eyes widened and his face turned the colour of a tomato. "I didn't mean it that way!" He stammered.

Isabelle laughed. "Its okay Simon. I get what you were trying to say." Then she smiled at him and I swear he was going to faint then and there. Will must've seen Simon's expression because he looked at me, eyebrows raised. That looks oddly familiar I thought. Had I seen Will make that expression before? But I had never even talked to him before. I gave him a _don't-even-ask_ sigh and he smirked, which once again made me feel as if I had seen him do that before. Was this déjà vu or something? Then I remembered something that Tessa had said.

"Wait Tessa. You said that you left the group. So I'm assuming you're not just here to apologise?"

She nodded. "Yes Clary. We came to apologise but also to ask if you could, perhaps let us join your group?"

If I could raise an eyebrow, I would've. Group? I was quite sure that a 'group' would have more than 2 people. I voiced my thoughts.

"Ah well you're um…"It was clear that Tessa was struggling to find a word that fit Simon and I's situation. As I thought about it, I couldn't either.

"I know what you mean." I said, saving Tessa. She gave me a hopeful look. I looked at Simon. _What do you think?_ My eyes said.

"All of you?" Simon said, mainly looking at Isabelle. She gave him a sweet smile and nodded in confirmation. Simon looked back at me, his smile so big that if it could, it would've gone past his eyes. _Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes _his eyes read.

Hoping this wasn't all just one big prank I nodded. "Sure. Why not? The more the merrier!" Tessa sighed in relief while Jem gave me a warm smile. Isabelle clapped her hands and beamed at Simon. "Thank you Simon. Thank you Clary. I know we'll be good friends." Simon gave me a _life is perfect, she knows my name _sigh.

"So you guys sit here every day?" Jem asked.

"Yep. Since the day Seelie and I had that incident. I didn't want to be anywhere near her so yea. But you know it wasn't me who spilt the nail polish that day right?"

"I know Clary" Tessa said in agreement. "I was sitting near Seelie that day and I saw someone knock it over though I couldn't recognise the face. I tried telling Seelie but she never listened to me. I'm sorry Clary. I should've tried harder. It would've saved you so much pain."

I smiled reassuringly at her. "It's okay. It wasn't you fault."

"So Clary," Will said. His voice was rich and deep, sounding very manly. His slender fingers were resting on the table. His long black hair almost reached his eyes. "I heard that you got paired with some really lazy kid for a music assignment."

_How had he known that? _"Yea. Jace Herondale. But he's not just lazy. He's the guy version of Seelie but _tripled_. He's going to ruin my chances of getting into Music in year 11."

Will grinned at me, another expression that looked vaguely familiar. "I know. My cousin can be a handful."

_Wo-aaaaaat?_ My eyes widened. "Are you serious?" It made sense. The expressions that Will made looked familiar because I had seen the same ones on Jace.

"Wait you didn't know?" Will asked. I continued to stare at him with disbelieving eyes. "People always thought we were brothers because we shared the same last name." He explained

_They did? Why did I not know about this? _I didn't even know Will's last name. Will Herondale. Huh. Had we not ever had classes together before?

I blinked a few times, trying to process the information. "I see. I never even noticed."

"Well that's new. Everyone knew about this. I mean, we're both strikingly good looking."

They looked similar but I hoped they're personalities weren't. Because if they were, I would surely have a problem with him being here. Tessa seemed to hear my thoughts because she said "But Will and Jace have completely different personalities. I mean, they're both cocky and arrogant but come on, which boy isn't?"

"Simon." I said immediately. I had never seen being cocky or arrogant. He was never an ass to anyone. So in other words, he wasn't Jace. And thank the gods for that.

Tessa smiled cheekily at Will and he returned the expression. _They like each other_ I realised. What about Jem? I looked at him and saw him looking at his two best friends. He turned to me and gave me a sad smile, shrugging as if to say _what can I do?_ A gave him what I hoped was an encouraging smile. I turned to the side, surprised to see Isabelle and Simon talking together, heads drawn close. _Well look at that. My baby is all growing up. _Simon looked up for a second, caught my eye and gave me a sheepish smile. I grinned at him and he continued his conversation with the girl. Will had moved to sit next to Jem and they were both talking about something to do with 'church' and 'cats'.

I turned to look at Tessa."Hey Tessa. What's up with you and Will?"

"What do you mean?"

"Come on. You know what I mean."I expected her to shrug it off, which would've been understandable since we barely knew each other but to my surprise, she took my hand.

"Clary, I know we haven't said much to each other but I trust you. I really do. So I'll tell you alright?" I nodded. "I like Will. I like him a lot. He's cute, funny, kind and sarcastic. But I don't know if I should do anything about my feelings."

"Because of Jem?" I guessed.

"Yea. We all attended the same primary school and when I found out that we were all going to the same high school, I was really happy. But then at the beginning of high school, I found out that they both liked me. But if I knew that if I told them that I knew, things would get complicated. So I never said anything and hoped that they would find someone else to crush on because they were just friends to me but I didn't want to hurt any of them. But they always stayed by my side and I noticed that they never even bothered talking to other girls. But in year 9, I started acting really strangely around Will. I would find myself flirting with him, laughing more often around him and I'd get this bubbly feeling every single time we were alone. But Jem is my best friend and I just can't hurt him."

I knew how Tessa felt. During the time when I knew that Simon liked me, I was so scared to hang around guys in case I started liking one of them because I knew that if I did and Simon found out, I'd break his heart. But thankfully nothing happened and once we got to high school, things changed.

"I know Tessa. I used to feel that way when I knew that Simon liked me." If she was surprised, she didn't show it.

"But now he's moved on to someone else right?" She said, looking at Isabelle.

"Yea. He has."

Tessa continued. "But you know, for a while, some part of me liked knowing that 2 guys liked me, especially ones that I knew. But I'm sure that all girls feel that way. We like attention right?"

_Not me. Attention is a no-go. _The only guy who had ever liked me was Simon and when I had found out, it didn't feel good because I knew that I didn't liked him back. I spent that whole period of time, wondering how he would react if he found you that I didn't return the feelings. But that was a while ago and we never talk about it, simply dismissing it as a 'primary crush.' I had originally thought that Simon's crush on Isabelle was another 'primary' one but as the years went past, his affections for her only grew stronger. He couldn't help how he felt, though he knew that she would most likely crush his heart under her Prada boots.

"But after a while, I realised that I was so wrong. I wanted them to stop liking me because I was scared that they would leave me when they found out that I didn't like them. Either that or they'd turn on each other. It scared me Clary. And it still does. And also with Will, we're so young you know? High school relationships never work. But sometimes I see people together and I think I want that. Clary what do I do?"

She was coming to _me_ for love advice? Was she insane? I knew nothing of love! I had never had a boyfriend and almost never associated with guys, with the exception of Simon. I knew nothing about it. So why was she coming to me? I tried to make up and answer that I hoped didn't sound totally wrong. "Well Tessa, I think you should tell Jem. Tell him that you don't like him. It's better than giving him false hope." I said that, knowing that it wouldn't really matter because Jem already knew. "And with Will, do what you think is right. You could tell him or you could just hope that the feeling goes away. "

Tessa nodded slowly, coming round my idea. "I think I will Clary. Thanks." And then she hugged me, which felt amazing. Whenever I saw girls going out with each other to the mall, to shop and have fun, I had always felt a tinge of jealousy. I had never gotten to experience shopping with friends because well, I couldn't exactly shop with Simon. But when Tessa hugged me, I realised that maybe, I would finally be able to do that. I hugged her back tightly, smelling something quite nice. I must've been sniffing really loudly because she hear me and laughed. "Its apples. My shampoo is that scent."

"It smells really good."

She laughed again. "Maybe you can come by my house and I'll give you a bottle or 2. I have millions of them since my uncle works for that company." I nodded, just as the bell rang, signalling the end of lunch. _Wow. That was quick_. I watched as Simon and Isabelle stopped their conversation, both standing up with looks of reluctance. "Hey Clary. If you don't mind, give me your number so I can call if I ever need a girl to talk to."

"Uh yea, sure." I fished my phone out of my Lonsdale bag. I had never memorised my number since I never told anyone. I turned on my phone and clicked on the contacts app. I looked at my pathetic list of contacts. _No. There are so less people, it can't even be qualified as a list. This is so sad._ I was happy to exchange numbers, which would mean that I now had 5 contacts. I set myself a goal: Have at least 10 contacts by the time you die. After exchanging numbers, we all went our separate ways, with the exception of Simon, Jem and I: We were in the same math class.

I walked to class, feeling happier than I had been in a long time. The feeling of having someone close to me was rare since I only had one friend, and barely got to see my brother now. But after today's events I have a feeling that I'll be experiencing that feeling more often. And boy was I excited.

**F&F and review. Thanks to all the peeps who read and review my story!**

**Marina**


	11. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

I walked into the house, feeling as if something wasn't right. Then it hit me; I usually, no _always_ came home, being welcomed by the smell of delicious food. The fact that I hadn't meant that something was up. Whenever I came home, mum would be preparing dinner and the aroma would fill the whole house. Even after the meal, the smell would still linger. I didn't smell anything today, which meant that mum wasn't home. Again? Where did she go? "Mum?" I called to the empty-looking house. My voice bounced off the walls, echoing, making me feel alone. There was no response, which meant that unfortunately, I was right. Where had mum run off to now?

I walked to the kitchen, and to my disappointment, there wasn't a plate of food waiting at the table. In the unlikely cases that mum had to leave before I could get back from school, she would prepare the meal beforehand. From this, I could tell that mum had to leave in a rush. Suddenly, I had a craving for the sweet taste of apples so I picked out a red-juicy looking apple from the basket, and took a bite out of it. _Mmm. Delicious_. As I walked upstairs, something caught my eye. The neon-pink post it note stood out against the dull grey coloured fridge. I walked back down the stairs and towards the fridge. From a metre away, I could see that someone, presumably my mum, had scribbled a message. I took it off and saw that it was indeed my mother's handwriting, though it was a lot messier than usual. It read:

Dear Clary,

I have to go somewhere for my job.

Won't be back tonight. Dinner's in fridge.

Love mum

This was getting stranger and stranger. Firstly, last night mum said she had 'errands' to run. But this is the first time in 10 years which makes me think she's lying. Secondly, at the worst of times, mum would come home an hour or 2 later. But if she couldn't even be back by the night, then something was seriously wrong. I took out my phone, and called my mum. It went straight to voicemail. _This is some fishy, fishy business._ I walked back upstairs, note in hand, feeling like a detective as I tried to find clues that could lead to where mum actually went.

…

"Hey Simon." After finishing my apple and homework, I decided to call Simon, wanting to talk to him about the events of tday. He picked up after the first ring.

"Hey Clary." He sighed, sounding content. "Today was some day huh?"

I replayed the whole lunch in my mind again. "Yea Simon. It was."

"But I didn't know that Jem couldn't do Math. I thought he was a genius or something." Today in Math Simon, Jem and I sat together and Jem admitted that he was having troble with Math lately. And since we sat in the same bus in the morning and afternoon, I told him I would help him during the 1 hour rides. I had never even known that he and I lived less than 3 minutes, which was closer than Simon.

"he's just struggling at the moment. If I recall correctly, he was quite good. Come one, you've been thorugh something like this befre. You sed to suck at math in years 7 and 8. But your all better now right?"

There was silence on the other end. "Clary. I'm _still_ struggling."

"That's besides the point. You get my meaning right?"

"I guess," he grumbled.

Another thought popped into my mind. "Hey did you know that Goden Boy and Will were cousins?"

"Yea. I'm surprised that you didn't though."

"How was I meant to know though? I hated Golden Boy and had never talked to Will did you find out?"

"Like halfway through year 7. But it was so obvious Fray. I mean, the smirk, the grin, the eyebrow raise were all obvious giveaways. But the last name was a big one. People thought that they were twins but I had heard them talking one day and one of them had an accent. I think it was Will. He had a faint English accent." Now that he mentioned it, Will did have an accent. A small one, but one that could still be recognised. "So that meant that they weren't twins which only left the option of cousins."

"So you made this connection in year 7?"

"Yep," He said, pooping the p.

"Wow. You're smarter than I thought Lewis."

"Why thank you. That is a great compliment coming from such an esteemed lady like you. I will cherish your words for the rest of my humble life," he said in mock modesty.

If I was next to him, I would've slapped him. "Oh shush you Lewis. But hwo come you never told me about Will?"

"Well like you said, you hated Golden Boy and we never even talked to Will."

A few seconds of silence played out. "Lewis. What was uup with you and Izzy?You looked like you were having a great time. In fact, you both looked like it."

He sighed again. "Clary I think I like her even more now. I was great. One of the best lunches I've ever 's so easy to talk to her. And her voice is so sweet I could listen to her. And you won't believe it," Simon said, his voice rising in excitement. "She plays Dungeons and Dragons! We were talking about it the whole time."

Well that was not I was expecting. Pretty Isabelle Crusher of Hearts, was a gamer? Woah, step back. But there was something about Simon's tone of voice. "Spill Simon. That's not all that happened. Tell me. I didn't go through all the fangirling- no fan_boying_ for nothing. Tell me what happened."

He gave a shaky laugh. "Well I asked her if she would like to come to my house and paly one day."

"And?" I almost shouted.

"Well, you know she said yes," he said in a casual voice. I screamed in happiness, glad that mum wasn't home because if she was, she would've come running up the stairs, demanding what had happened.

"That's great. The years of eye-goggling and drooling has finally paid off right? And your first date is a gaming session? That's so cute!"

I swear I could feel the heat rise to Simon's face through the phone. "I- it's not a date Clary. Don't say that!"

"But you wish it was?" I teased. There was silence on the other end. "Did you give her your address?"

"No. But…"

What? So there was more juicy news? "But what? Lewis spill or I swear I'll tell Izzy all the times you've drooled over her."

"Fray if you do, I will tell everyone that you had a crush on Smeliorn in year 7." I shuddered at that memory. When I had first come to high school, I had a massive crush on Meliorn which was, and still is, the most stupid thing I've ever done before. But only Simon knew about this unfortunate and disgusting _crush_. But it all changed whne he started teasing me. Now I just despise him. No biggie.

"Simon if you do-"

"You'll distort my face? Ok calm down I won't. Isabelle gave me her number and told me to call her."

"Well, did you?"

"Yea. I just did. She's coming over sometime next week."

"You guys are going a bit quite don't you think. From drooling to talking for the first time to dating all in 2 days? Wow. You've got some sha-dazzle in you Lewis. I'm quite proud."

"Why thank you." Even though I joked about this, I had to have a proper talk with Isabelle soon because if she ended up crushing my best friend's heart I would kill her. Literally No, not literally. That would be murder. But I'd probably distort her face too. I had to make sure that she liked Simon and was planning on staying with him. I made a note in my mental diary: URGENT: Must check Isabelle.

"Hey Lewis. I think my mum is lying to me," I said suddenly.

"What? I thought we were talking about my ever-so interesting love life."

"I'm serious Lewis. First she disappears last night, saing she has _errands_ to run. Come on, does she ever have to run errands?"

"Uh I would'nt know Clary. But if you want me to say no, I'll say it."

"It's a negative. And you know, she left me a poast-it note saying that she wouldn't be back tonight. Do you know how strange it is? She won't even tel me _where_ she's going.. And she's not picking up her phone either. It just jumps to voicemail."

"Man, are you sure your not reading too much into this? I mean the once is a coincidence, twice is a coincidence right? If she does something again, then it's a pattern. If you ask your mum now, and its for something normal, then she might think that you don't trust her."

"but Simon my-"

"Your super power right? You think she's lying to you?"

"I don't know about the 2nd one. But last night is a definite no-go. But what I can't figure out is why she would lie to me. Does she not trust me or something?"

"I dunno Clary. Maybe she's doing something that you wouldn't agree with."

"Like what?" I asked. Why would mum want to do something like that?

"Going to clubs and flirting with men? Maybe she's cross-dressing."

"That's not funny Lewis."

"Sorry. Look why don't you ask her? It's better than you thinking about possibilities that oculd be very farfetched. I mean for all you know, she may have just forgotten to say where she was going. Don't think too much into this before you actually know whats going on alright?"

I sighed. Simon was right. I shouldn't be thinking about this too much. Or for all I know, I could come to some wacky conclusion that my mum's secretly a stripper or a drug dealer. "Ok Simon, I'll stop thinking about it."

"But don't stop trying to call her alright?"

"Yea." My phone started vibrating in my hand, which meant that someone was trying to call me. "Simon someone's trying to call me. It might be my mum. I'll call you back later ok?"

"Yea sure thing." Then he hung up. I looked at the phone, hoping to see my mum's name. But it was some unknown number. I picked up, and for a feleeting second, thought that it could possibly be some guy who had kidnapped my mum and was planning on ransoming her.

"Hello who is this?" I said cautiously.

"Forgotten me already?" The other side said with a laugh. _No. Not a kidnapper. Even worse._ I groaned.

"What do you want Golden Boy?"

"To talk," he said casually.

"Then talk. Ive got better things to do ."

"Like what?" I could totally see the smirk on his face and my insides boiled.

"Like nothing," I retorted.

"Ouch shortie. That hurt a lot." _Lies. It'll take way more than that to bruise your massive ego. _"Well, I thought we could work on the assignment since we only have 2 weeks left and we've only gotten a little done."

"And I wonder who's fault that is." I looked at the clock. It was 5 pm. I had finished my homework and had nothing else I had to do. "Are you talking about now? Where would we go smart-ass?"

"Your house or mine. Take your pick." Was he serious? No one was at home… if he came over, it would just be us. _No. His ego wouldn't fit in my house. _

"Where's your house?"

"Seven Hills." That wasn't too far from my house. I had been there before so I knew the are pretty well. But I didn't feel like moving. And I had also planned a date with myself tonight as a reward for surviving 3 encounters with Golden Boy. I was meant to watch the next episode of Teen Wolf. But if even he thought that we were running behind then we were pretty behind. _Damn. Dylan O'Brien, Tyler Posey, Tyler Hoechlin and Daniel Sharman will have to wait. _Teen Wolf was my life. The plot was amazing though the special effects were pretty bad. The cast was amazing and every guy was super hot. And what made everything better was that Tyler Hoechlin was always shirtless. _And damn was he hot_.

"I'm afraid your ego won't fit through the front door so I'm going to have to go to your place. Your not alone right?"

"Do you want me to be?" he said suggestively. I resisted the urge to puke.

"Your disgusting. Text me your address. I'll get there as soon as I can." I hung up, not wanting to hear his voice anymore. A moment later, Golden Boy texted his address to me. '20 June Cresent'. I out the address into Google Maps, trying to find the quickest and most convenient way to get there. I reduced it down to 2 options: Take a bus, then a train, then another bus that stopped right outside their house, or I could take a bus and a train then talk for 15 minutes. I chose the latter thinking that a little exercise wouldn't hurt me. I took a quick shower since I had to wait for 15 minutes before the bus came. I changed into my comfy black pants and picked out a random t-shirt from my wardrobe. I took out a black coat that went to my knees because it was getting a bit chilly outside. I put my music book and my school copy of frankenstien in my Lonsdale bag. I walked to the door, closing all the lights on the way, but leaving the one in the hallway. Walking to the bus stop, I shrugged on my coat, feeling the chilly breeze bite my skin. After a minute or 2, the bus came. I got on, swiping my opal card, thinking _Oh I am _so_ going to regret this. _


	12. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

**Thanks for the reviews guys! And to Sn0wAnge1, shout out to you. Thanks for thinking so highly of my story. You make me wanna write even more! Much love. Read and review plz!**

The bus was filled with people though I managed to find an empty seat up the front. I pulled out Frankenstein and continued reading from the page I had bookmarked. After 2 chapters, I looked up from my book and out the window. The sun was beginning to set and the image was just beautiful. The red and orange blended nicely together with patches of light purple here and there. _One day _I thought, _I will paint the sunset._

I thought about what would or could happen tonight. _I can't believe this. Apart from Simon, I have never been to a boy's house before. This would be my first time. _And it was with a total douche-bag. This was so sad. I had always imagined the first time to be sweet. I would go to my boyfriend's house and I'd meet his parents and siblings, who would all be very welcoming and kind. And then we'd go to the room and talk about the simple things in life, while listening to our favourite band. _Well another dream crushed. Yay me._

We stopped and an old lady got on. I stood up, intending the give her my seat, since my stop was creeping closer. She saw me and said "No, no, no. You're a little girl. I'm sure we can both fit." I sat back down and she sat with me. I continued reading my book. After 2 pages, the old lady spoke up. "What are you reading darling?"

I flipped to the front cover. "Frankenstein. It's for school." She squinted at the front cover then smiled.

"Aren't you a hardworking girl. I'm Maggie by the way."

"Clary."

"So where are you going?"

"To a friend's house to study." Friend? Oh he was so far from that. But I had a feeling that if I said 'Oh you know, just going to my most hated schoolmate's house to study though I'm positive that I'm going to strangle him before we get anything done because he's sarcastic, cocky and rude' I'd scare her away, maybe even give her a heart attack. Which would _not_ be good.

"You mean your boyfriend's house?" I almost slipped off my seat. My gosh, what made her think that? If it wasn't for the fact that she was a very nice, old lady and we were on a bus, I would've totally scream 'Are you out of your pooping mind?! I hate him to bits!' so instead I said, as calmly as I could "No. What made you think that?"

"Well I know that whenever my granddaughter says that, she means that she's meeting with her boyfriend to do anything _but_ study." Oh gosh, I did not need to know that.

"Maggie, I'm telling you, he's just a friend. In fact, 'friend' might be a strong word. You see we're not very fond of each other but we were paired together for an assignment so we had no choice."

"Oh you say that now but just you wait honey. Teenagers and their raging hormones. One minute, you'll hate him and the next, you'll want to…" She trailed off. Oh my gosh, I think I'm going to puke. What was she on about? Was she on drugs or something? "Just remember honey, high school romances burn bright, fade fast." I was getting love advice from an old lady. This was so strange. Luckily, my stop was next so I stood up, putting the book bag in my bag.

"Thanks for the advice. I'll keep that in mind. It was nice meeting you Maggie." She nodded and smiled. I got off the bus, feeling glad that my stop had come at such an opportune moment. I crossed the road, to where the train station was.

…

After the train ride, and a 15 minute walk with multiple wrong turns, I finally got to Golden Boy's house. _No, not house_. _Mansion_. The massive building loomed over the surrounding houses. It looked beautiful. It was like a cottage but super-sized. It could possibly be a 3 storey house with multiple windows and a massive balcony on the top storey which was supported by 3 whit pillars, in a triangular shape. There was light coming from the majority of the windows. Parked outside was a sky blue mini cooper, a yellow Lamborghini and a massive hummer. _Holy cow, how rich _are_ they? _My house costs less than the price of the 3 cars put together. I walked up the path that led to the door. The sides were like mini gardens. There were yellow tulips and red, white and orange roses. There were little, round shrubs on the edges of the pathway. I couldn't see a single weed. _So his mum likes to garden? Cool._

I walked to the massive, looming door. The tall, dark oak door was almost 3 times my height. I knocked on the door thrice and a moment later, a boy looking no older than 10 opened the door. His hair was jet black which was odd because Jace's hair was blonde. I couldn't see any resemblances between Jace and the boy. Had I gotten the wrong house? He looked at me, which wasn't something that happened often. He looked at me with big blue eyes, which looked vaguely familiar. He had a Marvel Batman comic in his hand and I immediately made up my mind that I liked the kid. "Are you here to see Jace?"

_Phew. So it is the right house. _"Yes I am. Are you his brother?"

He shook his head, his hair shaking as well. "No I'm not. Well yea sorta." Then he turned around and called into the house. "Jace your girlfriend is here!" He shouted.

I felt my face go hot. How could he get me and Seelie confused? We looked nothing alike. Then Golden Boy appeared. He was wearing camo pants and a tight white shirt, 'suck my duckie' written on it. His damp hair was wet and messy, strands sticking out at random places. He had a towel around his neck and he ruffled the boy's hair, making it messy as well. "Max, she's not my girlfriend."

"But," Max said, turning to look up at Jace, a puzzled look on his face. But Golden Boy shook his head and the look on Max's face disappeared, replaced by a cute smile, showing dimples. "Oh ok. Have fun." He turned around and walked up the stairs, head down while reading his comic. _Cutie_.

Jace looked at me for a while. I smirked at him, for a change. "See something you like Golden Boy?" I expected him to make some witty remark but instead he nodded and pointed to my mid-section. For a second I thought he was talking about my boobs. Then he said with a smirk, "I like you shirt."

I looked down, temporarily forgetting what shirt I had put on. It was a blue-green t-shirt with the phrase 'I'm not prefect but I am limited edition' printed in the middle. I looked at him through narrowed eyes. "Soz not soz but I can't say the same for you."

He pouted. "Aw but shortie I wore this just for you." I rolled my eyes and was about to respond when a girl appeared. I immediately recognised the long, black hair and the slender, long legs: Isabelle Lightwood. What was she doing here? Was she and Jace family friends or something? She went up to me and gave me a hug, which surprisingly, didn't feel uncomfortable. She was a head taller than me without heels.

"Hey Clary, Jace told me you were coming over. I'm so happy to see you."

"Yea me too. How are you?"

She smiled at me, revealing a set of perfectly straight, white teeth. "Amazing. Especially after today."

"Today was pretty good," I agreed. Thinking of Simon I said "Hey Izzy, can I talk to you for a sec. Alone?" I added, looking at Jace.

She nodded. "Yea sure." She led me to a room to the side, which I assumed was the living room, judging the massive flat-screen television and the set of beige couches that were set around a round glass table. There were a whole stack of magazines on the table. I sat on the double couch and looked to the entrance, where Jace was standing, regarding us with amused eyes. I thought for a second, putting my thoughts together.

"Izzy. I saw you with Simon today."

"Oh Clary, Simon's great. He's funny, smart and kind. You're lucky you get to be around him all time."

"So you like him?"

She gave me a shy smile. "I've been liking him since the beginning of this year. But I never talked to him because I thought he hated me."

_Is she serious? _"Why would you think that?"

"Well, Seelie was always so rude to you and he was friends was with and I was friends with Seelie so I thought he wouldn't like me."

_Well. At least that makes sense. _"But still. Don't you always talk to boys? I mean, you could just talk to him, flash him your smile and he'd be all over you."

"I know I have a reputation with boys but it's not what you think. People think I flirt with the boys then dump them but it's not like that. When I find out that a boy likes me, I tell them that I don't like them back. I mean, it would be mean t play them, giving them false hope when you actually don't even know their name."_Damn. She's smart._"But it was always easy to talk to them. But whenever I thought about talking to Simon, I'd feel scared and nervous. Clary, I've never felt like that before."

"So you're serious about liking Simon?"

"Clary, I really like him. I'm serious."

_Yes, yes, yes, YES, YES! Score for Simon! _"Izzy, don't ever tell Simon that I told you but he likes you back."

A look of surprise and happiness crossed her face. "Are you serious?" She squealed. I saw Jace turn to look in our direction in the corner of my eye.

"You never knew Izzy? Have you never seen him staring at you or drooling over you?"

"No I haven't. I was always too scared to look at him. But I sometimes stare when I sit behind him during Business Studies."_Aw. That's so cute. "_Oh I hope this works out._" _At that moment, I felt so happy for Simon. Years of fangirling- no, fan_boying_ had paid off. He would get the girl! I hugged her suddenly, feeling so happy. I could totally see Izzy and Simon together, while little Isabelle and Simons ran around them in circles

"You guys have to get together. But I'm telling you now Izzy. If you break my best friend's heart, I will hate you till the day you die."

"I promise Clary. I won't hurt him."

We broke apart. "Izzy, I forgot to ask you. What are you doing here?"

She gave me a puzzled look. "What do you mean?"

I gestured to the house. "What are you doing in this house?"

She laughed. "Um Clary, this is my house. Well, my family's house."

This time, it was my turn to be confused. "But what about Jace?"

"Don't you know? Jace and I live together. Wait, no that sounds weird. Jace lives with my family. He's like a brother to me."

"Oh he didn't tell me any of this."

"Well, ask him to explain it to you," she said, nodding to Jace, who was now making his way to us.

"You girls finished with your giggling?"

I glared at him. "I don't giggle Golden Boy." I looked to Izzy. "Wait, so that little boy who opened the door?"

"That's my little brother Max, which is short for Maxwell," she explained. So that's why his hair and eyes looked so familiar.

"Oh that makes sense. You look like each other. He's so cute though. And he reads Marvel! We could totally be biffles!"

She laughed. "He is adorable. I love him to bits."

"Let's go. We have work to do," Jace said. I nodded and followed him, arms linked with Izzy. We walked into the kitchen, where a lady was standing in front of the oven. Her straight pitch-black hair reached her waist and I immediately knew that she was Izzy's mother.

"Hey mum. This is my friend Clary."

The lady turned around. She was pretty and looked not a day over 40. She smiled.

"Isabelle, I thought it was Jace's friend who was coming over. But I see she's very pretty," she said, smiling at me.

It wasn't everyday someone told me I was pretty. "Thank you."

She took off her white apron and put it on the counter. "Call me Maryse. It's nice to meet you." She hugged me and I caught a scent of peach. "Have you had dinner honey?"

"No but I had an apple before I left."

"Well, that's not enough for dinner. You're a growing woman. You need protein. How about this, you and Jace can work for a while. In the meantime I will make dinner. How about it?"

Oh she was so nice. I nodded. "That would be great Maryse."

She gave us a soft shooing motion. "Now go on. I'll call you when dinner's ready." Maryse was very like my mum: kind, sweet and happy.

"I have some homework to finish. I'll check up on you after a while to make sure that my bro's still alive."

I gave her a look. "If you want him alive, tell him to stop being a complete ass. Though I honestly don't think it's possible for him."

"Hey. I'm right here you know?" Jace said, waving his arms.

"I know Golden Boy. I could feel your ego from a million miles away."

"Oh shortie, you should be a comedian."

I shrugged. "I try."

Isabelle butted in. "You guys are so adorable." I glared at her and she gave me a sheepish smile. "Sorry. But Jace?" She gave him a warning look. "Behave yourself please. I want Clary alive ok?"

He gave her a grin. "I can't promise anything."

"Izzy? Who's here?" A pair appeared at the top of the stairs. They made their way down. It was 2 boys. One had pitch-black hair and bright blue eyes. He was wearing baggy denim jeans with holes on both sides. He had a black, baggy, woollen jumper on, which also had holes at the elbows. Another Lightwood I thought. Besides him was a guy who was a head taller than the other boy. His hair was spiked up and he had black, thick eyeliner on. I looked at him and saw that he was glittering. He was _actually_ glittering. He had glitter in his hair and glitter eye shadow. He had a _very_ tight black shirt on that traced out his abs and even _tighter_ pair of jeans on. They were both barefooted and both looked around the age of 18 though Glitter Boy looked older with the makeup and all. They were both holding hands and I realised that they were together. _That's cute._

"Alec, this is Clary. Clary this is Alec, my big brother and his boyfriend Magnus Bane. They both go to our school though they're in year 11._" So they're seniors. That's cool._

"Hey guys. Magnus, I like the look."

"Izzy, I like her already. We should hang out some time."

I laughed. "Yea sure. That'd be nice."

Magnus turned to Alec and grinned. "Alexander, you don't mind right?"

Alec blushed and shook his head slightly. "It's nice to meet you Clary. You play the piano at school right?"

"Yea I do."

"Alec, Magnus we're having dinner soon. Mum will call us when it's ready ok?" Izzy said.

"Yeah alright. We heard her talking. Well, we'll see you guys later." They made their way back upstairs.

"Shortie. My room is upstairs. You wanna work there?"

Izzy leaned over to me. "It's okay. My room is right next to his so you can call if anything happens. I'll keep an eye out," she whispered, winking at me. I laughed.

"Alright Izzy." Turning to Jace I said, "Your room it is Golden Boy."

**Ok. Don't forget to review, f&f.**

**Cheers, **

**Bane**


	13. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

**Hey guys. So I injured my right thumb today during P.E so I can't write or play accordion or piano. It hurts and stuff but at least it means I get to type more of this story. Thanks to al the people who read and review, as well as fave and follow. I hope that whoever reads this can review, because I just love reading your reviews. **

The first thing I noticed about the room was that it was surprisingly clean. And not just for a boy, but for anyone. The room was white, the furniture and walls all being the same colour. The day bed was in the corner and the blankets, which were also white, were neatly folded. There was a desk against one wall, with a lamp placed neatly in the corner of the table. He had a walk in wardrobe on one side, and a filing cabinet to the left of the entrance. There were textbooks neatly piled on top. The floor was bare and clothe-free which was what I had expected. _Dude, you're in Jace's room, not Simon's._

I wondered if maybe his mother had come in and helped him pack up the room before I got here. _Or maybe, he got his maid to clean it up. I wouldn't be surprised if he had one_. I turned around to look at Jace. "Why is your room so clean?" I said in an accusing manner, like it was a bad thing. Jace shrugged, making me think that my theory about the maid was right. "Izzy!" I shouted, hoping she could hear me over the Chet Faker music that was playing from the room. Luckily, she appeared to have heard me because she came in a second later.

She glanced at our positions and gave us a disappointed look. "Geez guys, I leave you for less than one minute, and you're already at each other's throats. I didn't even sit down yet and I hear you call my name. What if there's no one around one day and you end up killing my brother? I know he can be annoying and a complete ass," she said, ignoring the betrayed look that Jace gave her, "But I still need him. You know you're not going to get anywhere with this assignment if you guys act like this all the time right?"

So Izzy had thought I called her because Jace was pissing me off. I had called her, wanting to ask her a question. "Izzy? Why is Golden Boy's room so clean?"

She grinned and shrugged. "I don't know Clary. He always keeps it this way but I've never actually seen him clean the room before. It's like he never messes up the room. His room is the cleanest room in our house and we have over 10. I don't know how he does it. But you know, my brother's full of surprises. And if you guys manage to not rip out each other's throats," she said, looking pointedly at me, "you just might get to see some of them."

Surprises? I didn't think I would get to see any of those. I had only seen Jace act in one way. And that was the way he acted at school. I didn't think there was room for surprises. "Alright Izzy. Sorry for bothering you. It's just that I've never seen a guy's room this clean before. I mean, where are the underwear and socks that are meant to be all over the floor?"

"Do you want to see my brother's underwear?" She said suggestively, grinning at me.

I felt myself go crimson. "No, just mean it's meant to be busy. And his room is far from that."

"I think that's the nicest thing you've said to me shortie. I'm touched," he said, looking as if he was going to cry. I resisted the urge to wipe the expression away from his face since his sister was right there.

"Thanks Izzy. You can go back to listening to Chet Faker."

Her face lit up as she said "You know him? Doesn't he have like the _best_ music ever? Have you heard _Talk is Cheap_? It's amazing!" Her voice rising.

I nodded. _Talk Is Cheap_ would be one of my favourites from Chet Faker. I hadn't heard of him before until Jordan had sung one of his songs for Music. After that, I had explored his songs, realising that they were quite good. Not to mention the fact that he was Australian.

"That's one of my favourites. We'll talk about it later ok?"

She nodded eagerly before leaving to return to her room. A second later, the loud music once again filled the halls and the neighbouring rooms.

"You like Chet Faker?" Jace asked eyebrow raised.

"He's alright. Not my favourite but his music is a lot better than the other bands and artists of today," I said, turning back to look at his room, taking in all the small details. I saw a small stand next to his desk and realised that it was a CD rack. As I looked at it more closely, I saw that it was filled with what looked like tens of albums. I pointed towards the rack and Jace followed the direction that I was pointing in. "Can I see your CD's?"

He smirked before nodding. I walked towards the CD rack, aware that he stayed where he was. I recognised almost all of the album names. He had every album from ThePianoGuys, which were all at the top. Underneath those, were the albums from Ed Sheeran and Sam Smith. I had expected to find Beyonce or Minaj, or rapping artists but I couldn't spot any. I turned around, surprised to see that he was standing behind me. I hadn't even heard him move towards me. "You like ThePianoGuys?"

"You got a problem?" _No, it's just that I happen to like music from the same artists from you. Which is really creepy. Are you stalking me? _"I happen to like their songs."

"Uh huh." I pulled out an album from the rack and held it up.

"What? She's hot. And her music is pretty good." Taylor Swift was quite pretty, but I just thought that she had too many songs about boys and breakups. I mean, she made it seem like all girls cared about were boys. Like our life revolved around them. Which I refused to believe.

"You can pick a disc. I have a CD player just there," he said, pointing towards the white pedestal. Like he said, there was a CD player perched on top. It was one of the old kinds, where you could still put cassette tapes in. I turned back to Jace and was about to raise a brow, when I remembered that I couldn't. So as a substitute, I said "Aren't you old-school. I thought you'd have an IPod or something."

He grinned at me. "Like my sis said, I'm full of surprises."

I looked back to the albums and picked out one, suddenly wanting to hear Sam Smith's voice. Jace glanced at the disc in my hand and nodded, what looked like a look of approval on his face. "His voice is great. You can put it in. You know how to do that shortie?" He said, with a smirk.

I glared at him. "I'm not stupid Golden Boy. If you can use that, than obviously I can."

"If you say so," Jace said, bowing and putting an arm out, like a guard letting his queen pass. I gave him a sarcastic smile as I walked past him and towards the CD player. A cabinet on the side caught my eye and I put the disc in before walking towards the cabinet. Sam Smith's _Not in That Way_ started playing. I peered into the cabinet and realised that there were dozens of trophies and medals.

As I looked closer, I saw that each one was for Volleyball. There were 6 levels, though the last 2 were empty. I realised that he had organised it in year order. The first level was all the Year 7 trophies, the next Year 8, then 9, then 10. I had known that Jace was good at the sport, but his trophies said otherwise. There was a trophy in each level that was bigger and shinier than the rest. He had an MVP trophy for each year. If I had just looked at the sheer amount of trophies and medals he owned, I would've thought he was a state, or even national level. I turned around to look at Jace. "These are all yours?" I said, even though I knew the answer.

"You sound impressed shortie. But who else would go by the name Jace Herondale?" He said with a smirk.

I shrugged. "Fair enough," I said, trying not to sound as impressed as I felt. I had always wanted to play Volleyball but I was _way_ too short to play. Even though there were short Volleyball players, if I tried out for the team, it would just be another opportunity for Seelie and her friends to tease me.

"Why are the walls so bare? Aren't you meant to have posters of rock bands on your wall?"

He shook his head slightly, scowling. "I don't like any rock bands. They're too…rock for me."

I looked at him, surprised. I had never heard of a boy who didn't like rock bands. Izzy was correct. Jace _was_ full of surprises.

"Shortie, why are you so short?" He asked out of the blue, tilting his head and gazing at me curiously.

I shot him daggers. "Shut up Golden Boy."

"I'm serious. Why are you so short? I mean, there are short people in our grade, but you're shorter than them all. Why aren't you like Izzy?"

"What do you mean? Izzy's so tall."

Jace scoffed. "That's because she's wearing massive-ass heels all the time. She's actually only half a head taller than you. But you're _short_."

"So? What's your point Golden Boy?"

"I just wanted to know why."

I shrugged and looked away, not wanting to think back to that horrid day. "It's none of your business."

Jace took a step forward. "Why?" He said, seeming oblivious to the discomfort in my voice.

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Why? What could've happened?"

I looked away, hoping to give the impression that I _really_ didn't want to talk about it. Thinking back to that day made me feel sick to the bone. Jace was so annoying. Couldn't he see that I didn't want to talk about it? Yet he still kept bugging me.

"Why shortie? What happened? Tell me shortie."

I continued to stare out his window, trying to focus on the tree outside, doing everything I could to push away the thoughts that were being forced into my mind. I cringed at his voice, and his constant nagging.

"Come on shortie. It can't be that bad right?" He poked my arm. "Come one shortie. Tell me."

I lost the fight then. The memories rushed back into my mind. The pain, the white walls, the nurse's face above mine. I turned around and glared at Jace. "I got into a car accident ok?" I shouted. I cringed again at the volume of my voice. Toning my voice down, I continued, even though Jace's expression had changed to shock. _You asked for it Golden Boy_.

"Dad and mum were fighting when we were on the car. I begged them to stop but they didn't. They were so loud that they couldn't even hear me. So I screamed as loudly as I could. Mum turned around from her seat, and so did dad, even though he was meant to be watching the road. The looked at me in shock, because I never screamed. Dad took his eyes off the road for a second, just a second, and then we hit the truck. The truck was so big that nothing happened to it. But our car got smashed. Somehow, my family all ended up with bruises, and scratches but no more than that. But when we got hit, the impact fractured my spine. And by the time the doctors got to me, my spine had gotten a lot worse. They said it was a miracle that I could still walk. But now I'll be stuck at his height forever." I looked back at him and smiled bitterly. "But at least it's better than being dead right?"

Jace looked at me in shock. This was the second time I had rendered him speechless. "So are you happy now? You know why I'm so short now. Are you satisfied Golden Boy? Do you feel proud now? Are you going to tell everyone at school so they can laugh at me again? Call me a freak? Go ahead. It won't even hurt me anymore. But if you get pleasure out of it, then why not. I mean you never cared about how I felt anyway right?"

I looked away, blinking back tears. I refused to break down in front of Jace. Even though I've been telling everyone, including myself, that the taunts at school no longer hurt me, the truth is, it still does. I hate being called shortie or carrot top. I didn't want the car to crash or for me to inherit my mother's hair. Why couldn't people just accept the fact that it who I am?

"Clary," Jace said, his voice barely audible. He sounded different. His voice was soft, almost sympathetic. I turned around, and found that he was looking into my eyes, his face level with mine. I gazed into his large golden eyes, once again feeling as if I was going to get lost in them. But unlike last time, I didn't look away. Then I became aware of the fact that he had just called me by my first name. For the first time. _Ever_.

I smiled slightly. "Getting sick of the nicknames?" He looked confused for a second, but I watched as his face grew sad as he realised what I meant.

"Clary," he whispered again, his face just a few inches away from mine. I had never been this close to him before and I tried to pull away from him and his piercing gaze. But my body wouldn't follow my thoughts. I stayed frozen in my position, hearing Jace breathe softly."I'm so sorry." My eyes widened in shock. _What the fudge-muffin? This isn't Jace. The real Jace doesn't apologise and call me by my proper name. Does he have some twin I'm unaware of? Do they have some twin power so that they can shift personalities whenever they wanted to? Why does he sound so…not-cocky right now?_ "I never knew about the accident. I'm so sorry I teased you Clary. If I had known, I would've stopped."

I shrugged, trying to act as if I was completely fine with the sudden change of personality. _Maybe this is another surprise? _"What's done has been done. You can't do anything about it anymore," I said, looking away from his eyes, breaking the contact. But he tilted my chin so I was facing him again. His face came even closer to mine, so I could feel his breath. Sam Smith's _Make it to Me_ was playing softly in the background. "Clary, I have to tell you something…" _He's going to kiss me _I thought. _Omgsh, Golden Boy is going to kiss me. Ew, cocky, asshole cooties. Gross, gross, gross. Go away. _But I heard a soft voice going_ do it. Kiss me_. I pushed that voice far back, not wanting to believe the words it had repeated. _Do it. Kiss me_. I _hated_ Jace Herondale. He was one of the biggest reasons why my life was so unbearable at school. I _loathed _him_, despised_ him. And yet, I couldn't pull away. I stayed there, my eyes urging him to go on, wanting to know what he was going to say. Then I thought _He's probably going to troll me. Jace Herondale isn't capable of being serious. At least not to me. _But just as I was about to turn away, Jace straightened, his face changing, so that once again, he was smirking at me.

_I told you he was trolling you. But what else did I expect? _ "Tell me what? I deserve to be short? It was my fault? That I shouldn't have screamed on the car? You don't need to tell me things I already know Golden Boy," I said, glaring at him. For a fleeting second, I saw pain etched on his face and his smirk droop a little lower but just as quick as it came, it went making me think I had imagined it. I walked to my bag. "But I came here to do work Golden Boy, not relive the worst times of my life. So hurry up and get your stuff so we can start. I'm not going to fail this," I called out to Jace who was still standing behind me in the same position. As much as I tried concentrating on the music, I couldn't forget the moment we had just then. Or the feeling I had that Jace actually wanted to say something.

Jace P.O.V

I watched as she walked away from me and towards the other side of the room. I cursed myself for not saying what I wanted to say. _I should've told her. I had a perfect chance and I lost it._ But I realised by her posture and expression, that she didn't want to be here. She didn't want to be anywhere near me. _No, if I had told her, she would've thought I was playing with her again. She would never believe me. I guess I'm just going to have to wait._ I sighed, before making my way to where my music book was.

**I wonder what Jace is talking about. Hmmm. Anyway, pls review and F&F. I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. **

**Hav fun.**


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